


When Mangas Collide

by TwoHatchets



Category: Fruits Basket, Fruits Basket (Anime 2019), Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead Adopts Eri, Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead Adopts Shinsou Hitoshi, Alternate Character Interpretation, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Different Powers, Ashido Mina is a Good Friend, Bakugou And Kyo Would Be Great Friends, Bakugou Friendship, Bakugou Katsuki Swears A Lot, Bakugou Katsuki is Bad at Feelings, Bakugou Katsuki is a Dork, Bakugou Mitsuki Swears A Lot, Bakugou and Kyo friendship, Bakusquad (My Hero Academia), Bakusquad Shenanigans (My Hero Academia), Binoshi, Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, Cute Kirishima Eijirou, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Good Parent Bakugou Mitsuki, Hitsuzen, Hurt Bakugou Katsuki, Hurt Kirishima Eijirou, Hurt/Comfort, I thought of the detonate quirk first, Implied/Referenced Torture, Insecure Kirishima Eijirou, Jirou Kyouka is in the Bakusquad, Kaminari Denki is a Good Friend, Kirishima Eijirou is a Good Friend, Kirishima and Tohru Friendship, Kirishima must be protected, Kyo and Tohru are goals, Kyo is a dork, Kyo swears a lot, Kyoru - Freeform, M/M, No Smut, Parental Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Bakugou Katsuki, Protective Bakusquad (My Hero Academia), Protective Kirishima Eijirou, Sero Hanta is a Good Friend, Sorry for the confusing plot, Supportive Bakusquad (My Hero Academia), Tohru Honda must be protected, Tohru is a dork, Tsubasa is syaoran, What makes a hero?, bakushima, bakusquad is best squad, kiribaku, never trust something you cant see, what makes a villain?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-30
Updated: 2020-03-09
Packaged: 2020-03-30 02:50:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 108,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19033237
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TwoHatchets/pseuds/TwoHatchets
Summary: Bakugou’s life is thrown for a loop when a  trio of shinobi infiltrates his school as his new classmates. As Bakugou gets to know them, he discovers that they travel across dimensions in an effort to give everyone they meet a happy ending. Originally summoned by Aizawa in an effort to change a terrible future seen in a dream. Upon discovering their true identities and mission, Bakugou helps them with their plan to save his classmates from an unknown enemy. If Bakugou wants to be a true hero, he needs to not only get stronger in ways he never considered, but will also need to become a great leader as well. Protecting his class from certain doom should be a good place to start. If Deku is destined to be this world’s greatest hero, Bakugou will aim even higher, and train to be the greatest hero of multiple worlds with the help of his new friends Kyo, Tohru and Tsubasa.A heartfelt story about personal growth, friendship, and overcoming trauma.





	1. A Fateful Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> This story and characters are a spin off from a Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles and Naruto fanfic I wrote almost a decade ago. The characters are an alternate world versions of Fruits Basket and Tsubasa Reservoir Characters. You don’t need to know anything about these that story or the manga’s they’re based from for I will explain everything needed through the story.

 

The world of Boku no Hero Academia rests peacefully for the night. The last of the civilians, pro-heroes and heroes-in-training turning in for a long-awaited rest after the UA’s Cultural Festival. All is well—in this world, at least. The world adjacent to it, however, is in the midst of an eternal war, plagued by death and overrun with gigantic cannibalistic monsters. In another universe, two brothers travel the country to restore their original bodies through the power of a tiny crimson stone. In yet another, a high school student writes names in a notebook, while dramatically eating potato chips.

These worlds—and countless others—continue to exist alongside one another, for the most part, utterly oblivious to the plights of others adjacent to them. Only a selected few are aware of the existence of these other universes,’ and even fewer can do anything with this knowledge. Those aware had most likely seen it in a dream. For the World of Dreams is one everyone visits, even if most are oblivious of this fact.

It was from this shared reality that an extremely powerful ability was created. The power to use dreams to see future events, possibly even the ability to visit other beings through shared dreams, if their wills proved to be strong enough. A power commonly known across various dimensions as Dream-Walking.

An ability born from a desperate need to change an undesirable fate, such as the case of one underground hero. While other heroes of his world sometimes developed another form of latent power to predict disaster, this hero’s dormant ability was one from a long-forgotten bloodline.

 

**Aizawa P. O. V.**

 

Aizawa Shouta didn’t understand the weird sixth sense ability some heroes had when it came to predicting disasters. The fidgety intensity that rolls off of Bakugou, Midoriya and All Might right before disaster strikes were something he learned to watch out for in them, but knew he’d never be able to emulate. His eyes were his power, so he tended to trust their ability to assess the situation above random gut feelings. Besides, he inherited his own way of predicting future events.

As a kid, Aizawa grew up hearing stories of how his family had once possessed prophetic eye abilities before quirks were discovered. This ability eventually diluting within his family over time as quirks became commonplace; until it became nothing more than occasional vivid dreams and instances of dèjá Vu. It wasn’t much, but it was something. And with his class becoming the targets of more and more villain attacks, Aizawa would gladly take any advantage he could get if it meant protecting them.

When the shaggy-haired teacher found himself in the familiar black nothingness that indicated he was about to experience another prophetic dream, he prepared himself. Ready to take in every last detail in hopes that he could remember any potentially essential pieces of information given to him.

This dark void comprised mostly of dark space, though dark misty clouds hung overhead, shifting slowly. Images, often shown in confusing fragments, displayed within them like an old film, making them distorted at crucial moments. Different scenes played in each dream cloud, forcing Aizawa to divide his attention between them all. Noises had a habit of continually fluctuating within this space. While paying close attention to one dream, a sudden commotion from another will rip his attention away from it, or voices from one dream will fade out mid-sentence. Regardless, the underground hero trudges on, walking through this void as dream clouds displayed short scenes all around him.

The floor matched the rest of the space, making it difficult to determine where the floor ended, and the sky started. Often giving the underground hero the feeling of falling despite his bare feet being planted firmly on the ground. The marble-like floor is smooth and cool to the touch.

He casually adjusts his capture weapon on his shoulders. Aizawa had always appeared in this space in the clothes he had fallen asleep in, but for some reason, his capture weapon and goggles always accompanied him here as well. Aizawa smirks fondly as he reminisced about his first trip here. It was just before he started his first year at UA. His dreams were about meeting a loud-mouthed kid with sunglasses, and the other one was of him creating his signature weapon and goggles.

Despite its dark appearance, Aizawa admits that this place does not feel menacing. Often feeling that the space itself welcomes the company. He assumes that most people were unable to see this space for what it truly was. Instead, they were confined to one of their many dream clouds. Living through its pleasant nonsense until waking, as he does when not existing in this dimension. Ignorance is bliss, after all.

The raven-haired instructor halts in front of a wall of more significant clouds. Looking up at them humbly. If he gets enough to sleep--i.e., he’s not woken up because two students were caught fighting in the middle of the night-- and keeps a steady pace through the minor clouds, he occasionally gets the chance to see more influential events on these massive clouds. After the first villain attack, he had attempted to ignore the smaller clouds in an arrogant attempt to skip to what he perceived as the most important dreams. He was rewarded with nothing. Absolutely nothing. The void’s clouds had slowly dissipated until none were left. However, as the last cloud disappeared into nothing, a blood-curdling scream rang out that made him sick to his stomach. It was Midoriya.

After months of sleepless, dreamless nights, he would recall this scream the night of Bakugou’s kidnapping. The dreams graciously continued after that. With their return, Aizawa vowed that he would no longer take his powers for granted. He made an effort to take better care of himself. Made sure he got at least one night of good sleep a week, took extra care to pay attention to everything given to him, and took steps to allow certain events to happen as shown. As an instructor, Aizawa did not want his students involved in the rescue of Eri, thinking it would be too dangerous. But after a dream showcasing what would happen if they didn’t, he begrudgingly changed his mind. Even went so far as to convince the rest of the heroes involved to let them join the team, though he was never able to explain precisely why he needed them to be involved. It had cost him a few favors, a couple burned bridges and a promise to never speak badly to the press again to accomplish this feat. But it was well worth it in the end. Now he is the adoptive father of the cutest little girl in the world.

The shaggy-haired man waited patiently for these clouds to come to life with large images of what’s in store for his class. So far, the images were the usual class shenanigans. Aoyama’s pants had fallen down during training, Sato angry that someone had stolen a tray of cupcakes he was making for the dorm movie night, the girls singing karaoke for their monthly “Girl’s night.” Iida was mad that someone used Kirishima’s hair dye to make his hair purple and, of course, the self-named, “Bakusquad,” getting detention. Most likely from said prank--though Kirishima looked close to tears, so he will make a note that he was probably not responsible for it. Aizawa should thank his lucky stars if his only worry was whether or not Kirishima wrongfully got punished for a prank.

A flash of light, reminiscent of lighting, announced the beginning of another dream. Aizawa crossed his arms in preparation for what this next series of scenes would show him. As always, the images started slowly at first before steadily increasing their speed. Images, sounds, and sensations were going through his mind at blinding speeds, most flying by too fast for him to make sense of. Confusing and muddling his mind to the point it physically hurt. The cheerful images of the previous visions morphed into terrible darker images before his eyes. The old injuries below his eyes aching with renewed pain as he continued to watch the scenes unfold before him in horror.

Through the chaos, he made out class 1A’s usual laughter transformed into terrified screams. Displays of Quirks going haywire or failing altogether. Most notably, walls of ice struggling to form, only to shatter with the barest touches, Darkshadow raging out of control and attacking other classmates against his will. Kaminari unable to switch his quirk off and electrocuting himself, Mina facing off with a shadowy figure, her face terrified when her quirk refused to activate. Deku was yelling as he faces a villain, his body broken--the newfound control he acquired nowhere in sight.

It was too much. The images, the screams, and the uncontrollable fear the underground hero felt from them, as clear as if they were his own emotions, were all too much for him to handle. Aizawa couldn’t take it anymore. Couldn’t even look away, for the visions played all around him. Each more painful than the last. Too distracted by the pain in his own heart to notice that the world around him began to crack at his feet.

As if to further inflict pain, the misty images began to piece together, creating a clearer picture. The cold glowing eyes of a nomu accompanied by a shadowy figure looks down at his terrified students who continue to fight for their lives. Kirishima’s usually bright smile, now a pained grimace as he lies broken and bleeding heavily at a villain’s feet. Said villain preparing to aim a blow at his now vulnerable form. Before making contact, the image shifts to Bakugou furiously blowing through the chaos to get to his friend. Only to be taken by surprise by a sudden explosion. The aggravated yell Bakugou lets out as he’s swallowed up by flames soon shifts into a pained scream that is cut off short. The resulting inferno begins to bleed into the rest of the dreams until only the death screams of the rest of his class can be heard.

The eraser hero wasn’t exactly sure when he had fallen to his knees. But there he was, crouched on the ground as his world burned around him. His dark tired eyes were just staring blankly at the blaze in front of him. Not daring to look at the ground in case he saw the burning corpse of one of his students.

“No…,” Aizawa whispered to himself, his throat raw as if he had been in the fire as well. He tightened his grip on his capture weapon instinctively, his body involuntarily shaking in--not fear, but unfiltered rage. “No!” Aizawa snarled, pushing himself to his feet. Eyes flaring red as the fissures at his feet cracked even further.

“So that’s it?! That’s what we get after dedicating our lives to protect people? We get to train, develop, and then lead the next generation of heroes to their deaths?!” Aizawa yelled to the void in unrestrained anger. Abandoning all reason or cares as to how ridiculous he probably looked yelling at no one in particular. A small part of him realizing how much he resembled Bakugou at this moment, though the rest of him didn’t care. In fact, he felt like he understood his explosive student a little better now. Taking this to heart, he continued to yell all of his frustrations into the nothingness around him in a rare instance of vulnerability.

Aizawa was enraged. Enraged that with all the quirks and resources UA and the professional heroes had to offer, they still couldn’t manage to keep one class of future heroes out of harm’s way! Angry that a month couldn’t go by without a villain attack, villain encounter, serious injury, or gods forbid a group of his students doing vigilante work. Frustrated that despite all the progress, his ragtag group of students worked so hard to accomplish, it would all be for nothing if fate had anything to say about.

“Screw you, Fate...” Aizawa finished, winded from his uncharacteristic tirade. His throat was so raw that he could taste blood in the back of his throat. The underground hero swore to himself that he would find a way to protect his class. That he would not let these events transpire the way they were shown. That he would fight any villain thrown his way. Even prepared to sacrifice himself if that’s what it took to keep them safe.

A loud crack rang through space, breaking Aizawa out of his thoughts. Looking down, he finally noticed the fissures under his feet had spread out all over. The once sturdy ground, now on the brink of collapsing. Some pieces had already fallen into the dark abyss below. His still glowing eyes studied the ground for a moment before blinking. His shaggy raven hair immediately falling to rest gently on his shoulders. The slight movement was all that was needed to cause the last crack that would plunge Aizawa into the depths below.

 

Present Mic. had once told Aizawa that if you fall in your sleep, you will wake up. He was wrong. The shaggy-haired man fell through the floor and would have crashed hard into the water below had he not used his capture weapon to slow his fall by grabbing a still attached piece of...ceiling? The piece broke off immediately, but it slowed him down enough to only twist his ankle slightly upon landing. An injury that would no doubt transfer to his physical body once waking. He made a mental note to make Present Mic. pay for this later.

The sound of falling water took his attention away from the pain in his ankle. Around him were various small waterfalls that seemed to emit a vibrant blue sparkly light of their own. His eyes traced up their length in curiosity, but they eventually disappeared from view. Oddly, they seemed to start higher than where he had fallen. Looking down, he discovered that his bare feet balanced on the glowing water’s surface, which constantly rippled from the numerous waterfalls; however, when he placed a hand on the water’s surface, he could actually reach within its depths.

Dream clouds from his own dream world slowly started drifting into this new area. As they descended, their forms gradually transformed from dark hazy clouds to white fluffy ones and eventually turned to ice when it came into contact with one of the waterfalls. Creating entrancing frozen mirrors in its place. The once gloomy images displayed inside them changed and became clearer, thanks to its new form. Aizawa’s initial thought was that the scenes were simply repeating themselves, as he noticed quirks still going haywire. However, on closer inspection, he realized that the outcomes were changing.

A wall of struggling ice flashes towards an enemy. It shatters with ease, just like before, only this time waiting behind the obstruction of view is Todoroki and Uraraka. Taking the villain by surprise, they quickly take them down and restrain them with a long chain. Another scene depicts Kaminari, Mina, and even Sero taking on enemies with an assortment of weapons instead of relying on their quirks. There were numerous scenes of the rest of his class defending themselves without their quirks, with a precision and expertise in martial arts and weapons that amazed even Aizawa. Some of the students even seemed to be enjoying themselves despite the threat of death looming over them.

Kirishima’s broken and bloody form transformed into him flashing that familiar shark-toothed grin as he stood side by side with a girl Aizawa didn’t recognize. She had bright blue eyes and long brown hair with blue ribbons tied on either side of her head. Both were scuffed up a bit, but their eyes shined with determination as they held their weapons toward an unseen enemy.

Another scene showed Bakugou back to back with another kid he didn’t recognize. This kid had bright orange hair and mischievous red eyes. They both had clearly been through the wringer, their clothes scorched and tattered beyond salvation. Regardless, they still maintained matching determined--if not a little psychotic--expressions on their faces as they taunted their foes, kunai in hands.

Everything suddenly stops. Not just the scenes shown within the frozen mirrors, but the ever-shifting tendrils of the misty clouds and waterfalls as well. Making this new void so painfully silent and unnerving.

Sensing another presence, Aizawa immediately twirls around, casting his capture weapon at one of the nearby waterfalls, activating his quirk as he does so. The carbon fiber weapon manages to catch something just out of sight within the water. A sword suddenly breaks through the cascade a second later. Stopping just short of his throat. Aizawa lets out an annoyed tsk. His glowing eyes were peering through the fall for any sign of movement.

The scuffle had expelled most of the frozen in time water to reveal a teenager with short light brown hair wielding twin swords. Despite feeling the icy cold of steel against his throat, Aizawa couldn’t help but feel unnerved by how he appeared to be the same age as his students. The teen was dressed in a black tank top, white cargo pants, black combat boots, and gloves, a beaten pair of silver goggles hung around his neck and covering himself was a worn dark green cloak. Tension in Aizawa’s hand steals his attention. Following the length of his scarf, he discovers his weapon struggling to secure one of the teenager’s wrists to his other sword. Twisting it in such a manner that the underground hero assumed was an uncomfortable position for him. However, no pain reflected in the youths’ cold brown eyes as he too assessed the situation he suddenly found himself in.

“I don’t want to hurt you. But I will if you don’t leave here now,” the brunette ordered, using the point of one of his swords to lift Aizawa’s chin threateningly. His accent took the hero by surprise. Sounding both foreign, yet vaguely familiar at the same time. The flash of recognition did not go unnoticed by the sword wielder. “Who are you?” he asked, puzzled.

In a show of good faith, the shaggy-haired man slackened his weapon before answering, “My name is Shota Aizawa.” He responded truthfully. His stance still guarded and on high alert. Aizawa’s sharp eyes catching the way the kid seemed to breathe a little easier once the tension on his wrist was gone. Noting the subtle rotating movement, he tried to hide as he assessed the damage done. “I came here by mistake. I’m not entirely sure what this place is either.”

The teen’s eyes drifted to the floating images around them. Noting how they not only transformed but also became clearer upon mixing with his own dreams. His eyes lingered on the ones directly behind Aizawa for a moment before the teen slowly relaxed his stance. “I believe we’ve gotten off on the wrong foot.” He announced, withdrawing the blade from Aizawa’s exposed neck until it rested at his side. “My name is Tsubasa.”

The underground hero blinked, allowing his glowing red eyes to fade back to their standard charcoal color. Feeling a little better now that the blade no longer rested against his throat, but he kept his loose hold on Tsubasa. Years of hero experience unwilling to let him give up his only advantage under these questionable circumstances. He also didn’t miss that Tsubasa had failed to provide his surname.

“Where are you from?” he asked in an attempt to extract more information about the brunette’s intentions. “I’ve heard that accent before. You’re not from Japan?” Aizawa determined but wasn’t positive.

“I am not,” the brunette admitted hesitantly. Choosing his words with care. His light brown eyes regarding the man before him thoughtfully before continuing. “I am from the Land of Fire, though my accent is from my mother’s tribe, which no longer exists. My brothers and I being the last of this bloodline.”

“Land of Fire? Where is that?” Aizawa asked, puzzled. Despite his appearance, he was a model student when he attended UA. Excelling in all subjects, especially International Hero Politics. “That’s not a real place,” the underground hero argued, his eyes narrowing in suspicion. The captured weapon was beginning to tighten once more.

The teen maintained eye contact with the suspicious hero before him. “It might not exist in your world, but I can assure it is a real place.” Tsubasa tried to explain, gesturing with his hand before the movement was restricted again. Tsubasa frowned at the wraps around his wrist. “I understand your apprehension, but you have nothing to fear from me,” The teen assured, tugging slightly at his restraints. “I believe you broke through my dream for a reason.” Tsubasa determined, using his free sword to point at the images behind his captor.

“What do you mean?” Aizawa asked warily, risking a glance behind him.

“Allow me to show you,” Tsubasa responded, his once brown eyes now glowing a silvery blue. Movement on the water covered floor caught Aizawa’s attention. The water’s reflection revealed Tsubasa with large magnificent eagle wings on his back. However, his real body remained as it was. Before Aizawa could comment on it, Tsubasa pointed towards a few of the small waterfalls around them with his free sword. They immediately began to widen and merge to create a towering wall of falling water before them. A few places iced over from the combination of both their dreams colliding, like smudges on a screen, that Tsubasa was unable to bend to his will. “These were the dreams I was experiencing before you broke through. They didn’t make any sense until I saw the remnants of yours.” Tsubasa explained as new images began to play.

Never had Aizawa experienced dreams as clearly as he did when he gazed up at the scenes reflected in the massive wall of water. Projected on a surface easily as large as a screen from a movie theater, with only some distortion from the moving water. The first scene was of Tsubasa and the two other teens Aizawa recognized from his dreams. They were wearing UA uniforms and chatting happily with his students in the cafeteria. This scene changed to the trio teaching the future heroes hand to hand combat as well as weaponry skills. The water rippled to reveal another scene of Tsubasa, this time speaking with a boy with spiky purple hair and tired eyes that rivaled Aizawa’s own. Immediately recognizing him as Shinso. Aizawa had just enough time to wonder how he fits into all this before the image changed to Kirishima and the brunette sparring in the gyms after hours. Both sporting smiles that rivaled the sun.

The last scene was of two explosive boys with red eyes sparring with explosions as well as weapons. The gigantic waterfall was barely able to keep up with their speed and intensity. It struggled to contain the force of their explosions. Each one shooting water in all directions, soaking both spectators in the process. With a final boom, the dream shattered as the waterfall itself exploded, sending water everywhere. The sound of chaotic laughter echoing alongside the water raining down around them.

Tsubasa turns to Aizawa. His eyes already back to normal, as was his reflection. “As you can see, it appears that my group is intended to help you guys out,” he explains, wobbling slightly. Resting his hand on his sword, which was planted firmly in the water, to stable himself. “You weren’t in any of my dreams, so I didn’t make the connection at first.”

“How did you do that?” Aizawa asked in a mixture of astonishment and suspicion. He was never one to easily trust. Especially after seeing disturbing images of his students getting slaughtered before his eyes. Having a stranger suddenly appear, promising to save his students from certain death was just too convenient. However, a small part of him longed for it to be true. His eyes studied the teen still in his grasp for a few moments before continuing, “How do I know these images are really depicting the future and not just an illusion you created with you, Quirk?”

“Quirk?” the sword wielder repeated, his head cocking to one side in confusion. His free hand scratched the back of his head as he tried to figure out what his captor meant. His troubled eyes were staring into suspicious ones.

“I don’t know what you mean by ‘Quirk,’ but the images you saw were real. Just as real as yours,” he assured. Seeing that the man didn’t look convinced, he continued. “Besides, no matter how strong one’s dream abilities are, they cannot be used to fool another Dream Walker.”

It was Aizawa’s turn to be confused. “What is a Dream Walker?”

Tsubasa smiles at that. “I see you still have a lot to learn about your powers, the world of dreams, and the infinite number of worlds beyond your own,” the teen determines, motioning to the space around them. Using his sword to point to the faint outline of the hole, Aizawa fell through. “When you broke through your dream world in the hopes of changing fate through sheer will power alone, you Aizawa Shouta became a Dream Walker,” Tsubasa explained.

“Other worlds? You keep saying that, but that’s not…” Aizawa began, before a memory long forgotten resurfaced. He vaguely remembers a girl--a young woman--with long dark brown hair, wolf ears, and a tail; rescue him from villains when he was a kid. How her eyes glowed a silvery blue when she fought. She had been doing vigilante work, which, of course, was illegal at the time. Though that never stopped her from saving people. He recalls her saying that she never understood how this world was so hung up on rules and regulations when it came to helping people in need. He recalls the way she disappeared in a show of colorful lights so dazzling that he had dismissed it as a dream. Her voice so warm and friendly, with an accent he had never experienced again. That is until today.

Curious eyes watched Aizawa closely. “The idea that other worlds exist outside of your own might be difficult to believe, but it is true. My family has been traveling between worlds for generations, and we’ve still only visited a small number of them.”

“Your family?” Aizawa repeated. Once again, remembering the wolf-eared woman from his past. That would explain the similarities. “When I was a child, I met a woman with wolf ears and tail who claimed to be from another world. Was she a family member of yours?”

A flash of sadness reflected in the teen’s brown eyes before being replaced with their usual warmth. “That would be my mother, Amaya,” Tsubasa replied quietly. “She died when I was little.”

Aizawa didn’t need to press him for any sort of explanation. His sad eyes told him everything. She had died on the job. It was a look he’s seen on many pro-heroes faces. A look that could never be faked no matter how gifted you were at deception. Pushing the thought aside, he continues, “You expect me to believe you just travel to different worlds, helping people out of the goodness of your hearts?”

Tsubasa smirked at that. “Do we need a reason to help those in need?”

The underground hero smiled at the familiar naive words despite himself. He looked back at his dream clouds, which seemed to be unaffected by Tsubasa’s powers. They still displayed glimmers of a hopeful future. It appeared that Tsubasa was telling the truth when he said his powers were unable to affect his dreams. Only able to provide clarity to them within this space. It would be a considerable gamble to trust him and accept his help to teach his students to protect themselves without their quirks. However, refusing would be certain death.

Aizawa looked back at the teen, expecting him to be studying him carefully as he always was, but was surprised to see him staring at one of Aizawa’s dream clouds instead. It was the one of Bakugou back to back with one of Tsubasa’s teammates. Honestly, of all the images, this one surprised Aizawa the most. He figured that only Kirishima and the Bakusquad could ever get that close to Bakugou without the risk of death. But here’s a kid that couldn’t have known the explosive teen for more than a few months, fighting side by side with one of his most volatile students in perfect harmony. Not only that, but he managed to get him to use a weapon instead of using his quirk. Bakugou, not use his quirk?! What a feat! Mr. I hate everything quirkless is not using his quirk--willingly?

Aizawa takes a closer look at the weapon in Bakugou’s hand. A three-pronged Kunai. ‘ _Oh. That’s why.’_ The underground hero looks back at Tsubasa. Noticing for the first time, the sadness in his amber eyes. The two three-pronged kunai in their hands was Amaya’s prized weapons. He remembers them clearly when she had rescued him as a kid. Thinking back on it, this was the image that was displayed behind him when Tsubasa decided to lower his sword. ‘ _A treasured weapon wouldn’t be handed over lightly. No wonder Tsubasa decided to trust me so easily,’_ Aizawa thought to himself. The least he could do was do the same thing. He owed it to his mother.

The Underground hero turned to face the teen before him. He pulled on his own treasured weapon, freeing Tsubasa from his grip. The sudden release broke Tsubasa out of his thoughts. Aizawa then calmly kneels, resting an arm on his knee as he does so. “I, the Eraser Hero; Aizawa Shouta, hereby ask you Tsubasa and company, to please travel to my world and help save my students from the future I saw in my dreams,” Aizawa enlisted to the son of his savior.

Tsubasa blinked cutely, shuffling slightly in embarrassment by the sudden formality, before composing himself. His amber eyes once again glowing a dazzling silvery blue. The teen rests a hand on the heroes’ shoulder. “Before an agreement can be made, please allow me to explain a few things.” A nod from the hero urged him to continue. “Even if we come to your world to help. There is still a chance that the terrible events shown in your dreams could still come true. That it’s entirely possible that after all our best efforts, some or all of us will die. The future is extremely difficult to change as I’m sure your very aware. The more people who know, the more different choices and changes can happen as a result. Do you understand?”

Determined charcoal eyes meet amber ones. “Yes.” the hero announces. He promised himself that he would do anything to save his students. Accepting these strangers’ help would no doubt bring their own consequences, but as long as those consequences didn’t result in death, he would gladly shoulder them. “Even so, if there is even a glimmer of hope to save them, I will take that chance. So, I implore you to do everything in your power to help me change their fate.”

Tsubasa smiles. He offers a hand to the man kneeling before him. “Then I, Tsubasa Hitsuzen, hereby accept your proposal on behalf of my teammates. We shall travel to your world and do everything in our power to aid you in your time of need. We offer our knowledge, our weapons, and powers to you until the job is finished.” Tsubasa vows, gently pulling Aizawa to his feet. “My family is honored to serve your family once again.”

Aizawa and Tsubasa spend the rest of their dream sharing information and creating a plan to save everyone. Once the young dream walker wakes, he informs his teammates on their next mission and plans to rendezvous with Aizawa in his world within a week.

As they planned, Aizawa couldn’t help but be reminded of Tsubasa’s mother when he looked at him. They not only looked similar but acted the same as well. He was reminded again that while this trio would be here to help them, they too were only kids, the same age as his class as it turns out. Aizawa would be sure to protect them as well. He wouldn’t let them become a casualty either. The next few months were going to be interesting, to say the least.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've wanted to write this story for a while now. Even from the first season I could see the similarities between the My Hero Academia characters and the alternate versions of the characters I created. Especially with Bakugou and Kirishima. In the next few chapters I'm sure you'll also see some of the similarities with their powers and personalities. I've also seen some similarities with where the manga is going. I'm a little annoyed that some of my ideas for this story has already come up in the manga because I wasn't fast enough with my writing. I'll be sure to make a note when I get to a certain chapter about these instances. Anyways, I hope you enjoy this story.


	2. Trouble In Paradise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The shinobi travel to the world of BNHA and get briefed on their mission with Aizawa. Meanwhile Bakugou struggles with PTSD after his kidnapping.

**Kyo P. O. V.**

 

Kyo was feeling restless. You wouldn’t know it from how he lay on his back with his arms casually crossed behind his head. His already orange hair, seemingly glowing from the light of the setting sun, shielding his closed eyes from view. The only indication of his restless spirit was how his long legs swayed as they hung off the side of the roof of the abandoned house they were staying in. His body longed to leave this world behind. Having been in this dreadful place for almost two months already. They would have gone much sooner if it wasn’t for… Kyo’s arms and chest ached at the memory. He lifted one of his arms out in front of him. His tired crimson eyes studying the bandages that still covered them.

It had been three weeks since the accident. Three weeks since Kyo had died at a friend’s hands. Three weeks since his little brother broke the taboo and rewound time to bring him back, paying the price to do so that he still refused to tell anyone about. Three weeks since Tsubasa revealed his vision that Kyo’s death would trigger his sweet little Tohru to become the Destroyer of Worlds. Yeah, that would put anyone in a bad mood.

 The orange-haired teen growled to himself. Hoisting himself into a sitting position with his arms crossed angrily in front of him. Not only that, but both of his teammates have been coddling him nonstop since then. Forbidding him from any strenuous activity, hardly even letting him out of their sight. Even now, he can feel Tohru’s gaze out of the corner of her eye as she tends to the plants in the garden. If it was anyone other than Tohru, he would probably hurl a kunai at them and tell them to mind their own fucking business; but of course, he would never do that to her. Not that it would accomplish anything if he did. She would, no doubt, catch it perfectly in two fingers, as he taught her to do.

 Kyo let out an exasperated sigh. He should try to calm down. It wasn’t just the events from the last three weeks that have him on edge. It’s the energy in the air. Everything seems too calm. Too quiet. While he can still hear the same old songbirds singing, they sounded strange. Everything around him sounds quieter somehow. Like his senses are tuning out everything that’s not important.

 His ears prick up at the sound of footsteps. Turning his head, he sees Tsubasa a long way off, slowly making his way back from the forest.   _‘Something big must be coming,’_ Kyo thought to himself, narrowing his eyes at his brother without realizing it.   _‘And this mission that Tsubasa is so gung-ho about must be why.’_ His brother may have inherited their mother's foresight ability, but Kyo has always been able to sense shifts in his environment, thanks to his heightened primal instincts.

 Frankly, Kyo couldn’t figure out why they were doing this. A mission to protect a class of super-powered students from villains wasn’t that strange for them. That’s kind of a typical gig for them at this point. Kyo was more surprised that Tsubasa accepted the job in the first place. He’d been very adamant about staying out of harm's way this past couple of weeks. Waiting for Kyo’s body to fully heal. The orange-haired teen had just gotten permission to start light training again a few days ago, and now they’re packing up to go to a new world where they could potentially be fighting powerful enemies? Even though Tsubasa assured them they would mostly be instructing them how to use self-defense tactics, hand to hand combat and some weapon training; it just didn’t make sense.

 He continued to watch Tsubasa’s slow approach while twirling one of his kunai. A habit he acquired when he was lost in thought. It usually wasn’t this difficult to understand what Tsubasa’s motives were. Kyo could usually read his brother’s thoughts and feelings as if they were his own. The perks of coming into this world together. However, whenever he looked at his little brother now, he just saw the eyes of a stranger staring back at him. It had been this way since he had woken up after his accident.

 Regardless of Tsubasa’s motives, Kyo jumped at the chance to go on a mission; despite his still-healing body. Any mission at this point, just as long as it got him off this world, and back to some kind of normalcy. Besides, Kyo would be lying if he said it didn’t sound like fun regardless of whether they would be fighting villains or not. He absolutely loved training and fighting. And testing his skills on a whole new group of super-powered people? That’s what he lives for! Just thinking of beating them into the ground has him pumped. The thought immediately puts a determined smile on his face, revealing his uncharacteristically sharp canines.

 Catching himself smiling, the stubborn shinobi quickly composes himself. Choosing to pout childishly instead. He refused to let Tsubasa know how excited he was about this new mission. Kyo’s still mad at him for risking his life to save him. Also very frustrated that he won’t reveal what the price was to do so. It couldn’t be anything good. You don’t get to break one of the biggest taboos in every world and come back scotch-free. His crimson eyes scanned his little brother, who finally made it back to the clearing surrounding their makeshift hideout. Watching silently as he happily chatted with Tohru in the garden.

  _‘He doesn’t look any different,’_ Kyo mused to himself. Thankful that he had enough sense not to trade places with him on the spot. But not knowing the price of saving his life was driving him crazy with worry. If there’s one thing Kyo hates, it’s needless self-sacrifice. Something his brother should know by now.

 The unwanted memory of his mother being brought home bloody and broken flashes to mind. He lets out a low growl, which does manage to chase the painful memory away. “Fuck this,” he whispers to himself, flopping back into a lying position. This time with his arms stretched out on either side of him.

 He’s exhausted. Ever since his accident, he’d been plagued by nightmares of his mother being brought home bloody. Though now it’s sometimes his little brother instead. “How could you both do this?”

The nightmares also made him miss his mother, something awful. Having died on a mission when they were only five years old. Regarded as a hero for saving the person she had sworn to protect, though to do it, she hastily sacrificed herself in the process. Leaving behind her three sons in a world that would never truly accept them. Without so much as a goodbye or an explanation for the situation, she left them in.

 Usually, when his heart ached for their mother, he would seek comfort from Tsubasa. But he couldn’t bring himself to do that now. Not when his stupid face makes him hurt even more. His selfishness ripping open old wounds he thought had already healed. Kyo, of course, realizes he's selfish and stubborn as well, but his pride just can’t bring himself to be consoled or to forgive Tsubasa for his actions at the moment. He’ll forgive him in time, but for now, he’s content to pout.

 Movement catches his eye. He peers down to see Tohru waving at him. Beckoning him to come join them. His crimson eyes immediately soften. If there’s one drawback to this whole fight, it’s that she’s continuously caught in the middle of it. Having to relay messages from them both. However, he’s a little irked that she’s been comforting Tsubasa more than himself. He feels the heat in his cheeks and realizes that he’s blushing.  _‘I must be in the wrong.’_ Kyo thought to himself. He curses under his breath before sliding off the roof to begrudgingly meet up with his teammates. It looks like they were finally prepared to leave this world behind.

 “About fuckin’ time,” he grumbles to himself.

 Despite his impatience to be off this world, Kyo takes his time making his way over to his team. His pettiness outweighing his restlessness. Kyo doesn’t meet his brother’s concerned eyes as he passes him to stand on the other side of his most treasured friend. She, in turn, smiles up at him, though it’s not as cheerful as it usually is. This fight between them affecting her more than she let on. No doubt, she will continue to feel this way until the two brothers made up. That alone was reason enough to hurry up and forgive him already. But first, Tsubasa needed to stew in the consequences of his actions for a little bit longer.

 “Shall we?” he asks mostly to Tohru, though passively to his brother as well, who stood on the other side of her.

 “If you would, please,” Tsubasa answers, a little hurt. The pain in his voice makes Kyo’s heartache despite himself. But he still doesn’t cave.

With a nod, Kyo closes his eyes. He brings a hand to his chest, extending his fingers inward as if he’s going to pull at his shirt. Instead, his fingers began to glow. As soon as his fingers make contact, the tips of his fingers start to disappear within himself for a moment before he begins to slowly pull them back out. In their grip is the glowing handle of a weapon. He continues to slowly pull the glowing weapon from himself, the brilliance of the sparkling golden light forcing Tsubasa and Tohru to avert their gaze. Once removed, the weapon is revealed to be a glowing kunai.

 Tsubasa and Kyo were blessed with many powers from their mother. Her abilities splitting evenly between both of them. Appropriate, considering they are twins. Fraternal, of course, considering they look nothing alike. A fact that has always gotten on Kyo’s nerves. People always joking that he must have been adopted or something. But their powers more than proved their relation. They were always intended to use their powers together. Tsubasa finds those in need of their help through his foresight and dream walking abilities, and they can travel across dimensions and accomplish their missions through Kyo’s powers. His world travel ability uses the power of his soul in the form of a weapon. The blade safely kept within himself through the use of magic. Able to cut through time and space itself through the strength of his spirit alone. It, of course, is not an ability that can be used lightly. His soul must recharge before he can do it again, which usually was a month or two. If he knows the name of the place and the name of a person who lives there, he can choose where he lands. Otherwise, it's random. However, his powers gravitate to those that have memories of anyone from their family.

 Kyo opens his eyes, twirling the magical kunai in his hands a few times before holding the weapon out in front of him. “Aizawa Shouta of Musutafu, Japan, here we come!” Kyo shouts, his eyes glowing an intimidating crimson color. The tip of the Kunai traces the air in front of him for a second. The shinobi feeling for the slightest bit of resistance as his weapon locates the right world to cut into.

 A few moments pass before he feels the familiar snag of the kunai locating the correct dimension. He smiles that same chaotic smile he had in Tsubasa’s dream. “Found ya,” he whispers to himself. He carefully puts pressure on the kunai’s edge. It easily cuts through the fabric of the universe. Through the first hole, he can see that it’s night time in this new world. Perfect for them to slip in unnoticed.

 He gently makes a tear large enough for everyone to make it through. With that, the three shinobi quickly file through one at a time, with Kyo bringing up the rear. Once on the other side, the tear in the universe immediately moves to fix itself. Healing itself within minutes of Kyo passing through the rift. The orange-haired teen could feel the world’s relief as it is whole once more.

 Kyo returns the kunai into himself. Immediately, fatigue washes over him. He leans his arm on the nearest person, who just happened to be Tsubasa. Though he’s too tired to care.

 “You’re late,” a voice calls somewhere above them. Three heads look up simultaneously to see a shaggy-haired man dressed in all black, except for the white scarf around his neck, crouching on a tree branch above them. A bored expression on his face. “I’ll let it slide this time, but do it again, and you’ll be serving detention for a month.”

 

**Aizawa P.O.V**

 

 They were only a day late, but Aizawa detests tardiness for any reason. If you say you’re going to be somewhere at a specific time, then you should be there at that time. Traveling across time and space doesn’t excuse tardiness. Even so, he supposes he can give them a pass this one time. It’s just like the orange brat had said once they arrived, quite loudly he might add.

 

  _“You try traveling across dimensions and see how you feel!”_

 

 It’s true. He’s never transported himself to another world before, let alone bringing others with him. Hell, he didn’t really believe other worlds existed before last week. Aizawa could only imagine how difficult that would be. How physically taxing that would be on your body. And that brat did it by himself.

 When they hadn’t shown up the day before, Aizawa decided to spend the day at the designated spot, hoping they were only minorly delayed. Passing the time by grading his student's homework. He was about two-thirds done when a flash of light caught his attention. Looking down from his comfortable perch, he saw some sort of glowing blade cut through the air itself. Mesmerized, he continued to watch as a rift in his world was cut before his tired eyes. Afterward, seeing three forms walking through it as if it was in any way normal. He recalls the surge of power he felt upon their arrival, which only dampened slightly when the blade returned to the orange-haired brat.

 Aizawa steals a glance at the ill-tempered teen leaning against the wall by his home desk. Stubbornly refusing to take a seat in the chair next to him. Instead, opting to pretend to be interested in the view outside the window. All the while casually allowing the wall to bear most of his weight. The teen hadn’t spoken a word since his outburst outside. The only sign he had been listening to the recounts of their shared dreams was the occasional nod. The underground hero suppresses the urge to sigh. He’s beginning to understand why this kid ends up befriending his ill-tempered student. He hopes his class can survive another Bakugou.

While that kid, Kyo, he believed his name was, would most likely prove to be a challenge.

 The shaggy-haired teacher was thankful that the other two proved to be model students. Tsubasa and Tohru sat attentively in the other two chairs in front of Aizawa’s desk. Each looking through the materials Aizawa prepared for them. They consisted of the UA school handbook, hero policies, and regulations within this country, possible cover stories, potential threats, a summary of incidents that happened to his class so far, as well as photos and profiles of his students. These summarized their personalities, strengths, areas which need improvement, and, of course, their quirks.

 It had been a couple of hours since they first arrived, and they’ve finally finished reviewing all the information and settled on what their own quirks would be as they posed as students in this world. After some debate, Aizawa and Tsubasa agreed that it would be in everyone’s best interest to keep his foresight abilities a secret from everyone. No point in revealing any vital information to possible villains that they had premonition powers on their side. With that said, in addition to teaching his class how to fight without relying on their quirks. Aizawa has assigned them another mission. To do some spying of their own to catch the elusive Traitor at UA. The underground hero hoped that fresh eyes can help detect what the UA staff hasn’t been able to accomplish all year.

 “Thank you for doing all this for us!~” Tohru thanked Aizawa happily. Her voice somewhere in between a quiet cheer and a soothing song. It surprised him that while she belonged to the same world as the other two, she did not have the same accent as them. Though after talking with her for a bit, he noticed that she would sometimes slip into one for certain words. But for the most part spoke perfect Japanese, other than the sing-song way she spoke. “I hope we didn’t cause you too much trouble~,” she added bashfully.

 In all honesty, being overly prepared has always helped calm Aizawa. Anything to make things go as smoothly as they possibly can, gave him something to keep his mind busy with as he awaited their arrival. “It wasn’t too taxing,” he responded truthfully, though his tone underplayed the fact that it was more for his peace of mind than theirs. His eyes glance at the still untouched packet on Kyo’s chair before bringing his attention back to the other two. “You’ll be starting school tomorrow morning. I suggest you all get a good night’s sleep.”

 “Aizawa-sensei?”

 The underground hero looked up from where he was collecting his graded papers to see Kyo looking directly at him. He was no longer leaning against the wall but instead stood in a semi-crouched position. “Is there anyone else that knows the truth about us and our purpose here?”

“Principle Nezu is aware that I am bringing in outside help to train the class for a possible Villain attack. Though he has not been made aware of your origins. Nor do I intend to if I can help it,” the hero answered carefully. “Why do you ask?”

 “Just making sure that I don’t accidentally stumble into a situation where my cover is blown is all, ” he stated a little bored. Though his intense crimson eyes slowly moved from Aizawa to the now cracked door behind him. A shuriken suddenly appearing in his hand. His teammates were also on edge, though they remained in their seats. Pretending to be reading over the information in front of them. They were good. Their reflexes faster than his own in this situation. No doubt from years of experience in the field on countless worlds.

 “Understandable,” Aizawa stated, copying the shinobi’s lack of enthusiasm. Making a show of straightening the stack of papers in his hand against the desk in front of him. “That shouldn’t be a problem, though. Nezu is pretty recognizable. He’s one of the rare instances of an animal gaining a quirk, so he’s only about 2 feet tall. Shouldn’t be too hard to miss.” Hoping Kyo would pick out the true meaning of his words.

Without hesitation, Kyo throws his shuriken through the crack of the door. 

 Immediately a startled yelp is heard, followed by the thump of the shuriken embedding itself in the wall. As well as the sound of frantic struggling. Kyo instantly crosses the distance of the room, throwing open the door once he reaches it to reveal a familiar spiky purple hair teen with tired eyes.

 “Oh, hey, Aizawa-sensei. Fancy seeing you here?” the insomniac stated sheepishly. The sleeve of his jacket pinned to the wall by Kyo’s shuriken. Effectively, trapping him in place. His face paling even more than usual when he took in Aizawa’s angry expression, complete with glowing red eyes and standing dark hair. Shinsou could practically feel the extra homework he was about to be slapped with, and the terrifying hero wasn’t even his teacher.

 “You have five seconds to explain yourself before I erase your entire existence,” the hero threatened.

 

 

**Bakugou P. O. V.**

 

 

  **_Snap…. Snap…. Snap…. SNAP!_ **

 

 The simple sound echoed through the darkness repeatedly. The resonance steadily instilling more fear into him. With each snap, Bakugou was plunged from where he was tightly fastened down in that damn chair Shigaraki forced him into, a new type of hell. This hell was utterly silent, except for the adrenaline pumping through his veins, making his ears ring loudly and painfully. He was unable to move or see anything besides the blinding blue around him. The weird turquoise mass surrounding him compressed painfully against his body, threatening to crush him into nothing. The sensation both unbearably cold and overwhelmingly hot at the same time as if he was surrounded by icy fire. Even worse was the fact that he couldn’t breathe.

 Another snap, and he was back in that fucking bar he was taken to after his kidnapping. The villain hideout reeked of cheap beer, whiskey, and enough second-hand smoke that he probably had cancer now. Despite this, Bakugou immediately breathes in the foul air, forcing his body to take in as many large gulps as he can before he’s transported back to that airless nightmare. The whole ordeal feeling as if he was being waterboarded.

 As Bakugou struggled to regain his breath, he glares daggers at the masked villain sitting in a chair directly in front of him. The villain making a show out of snapping his fingers in his face, while subtly tapping Bakugou’s foot with his, each and every time he used his quirk. Giving the illusion that the snapping was all that was needed to bring him back inside that accursed sphere. Immediately after getting captured, the villains drew slots to see who would be in charge of watching him until it was time to go over their plan with the boss villain. Unfortunately for Bakugou, this compress guy drew the short stick first. The Hothead didn’t think much of the guy but thought this was probably his best scenario considering the other weirdos in their crew. He couldn’t have been any more wrong.

 After getting fed up with Bakugou’s foul mouth in the teen’s attempt to extract information, the villain had given him a good smack to shut him up. This, of course, had the knee-jerk response from Bakugou to deliver his own blow. Bakugou didn't actually think his strike would connect, considering he was chained to a chair with a heavy metal restraint covering his hands--considerably slowing his movements--but the metal cuffs connected nonetheless. Knocking the villains mask off, revealing a genuinely grotesque sight and effectively pissing him off.

  **_Snap!_ ** Mid-breath Bakugou’s forced back with enough force that his head hits the back of the chair hard. He immediately bites his tongue in his rush to close his mouth. The taste of blood awkwardly being held in his mouth, unable to drip down thanks to the frozen in time nature of the sphere. Bakugou now fighting the sense of nausea as well as the agony of holding his breath. With each snap of that damn Compress’s quirk, he lets Bakugou wait a little longer in that fucking place, but even so, he should have been zapped back by now. Bakugou grinds his teeth together in a vain effort to keep from breathing in.

 When Bakugou first got nabbed at the training camp, he had made the mistake of breathing in immediately and instantly regretted it. An intense pain flared through him as what felt like liquid fire forced its way down his throat. The sensation was even worse than when he was being suffocated by the sludge villain a year before. He vaguely wondered if that was what drowning felt like.

 In the haziness of his oxygen-deprived mind, a memory resurfaced. It was back before his quirk manifested, and his mother had taken him and Deku to their first swimming lesson. The nerd was scared of the water and clung to his mother’s leg like the baby he was. Scared to death that he wouldn’t be able to hold his breath and was going to drown before he got the chance to be a hero. Bakugou, of course, just laughed at Deku’s fears. He wasn’t scared in the least. He was excited to learn how to swim. Eager to be the first to learn in his friend group, and was obviously going to be the best at it as well. That, of course, earned him a disciplinary flick to the forehead. Contrary to what most people thought, his mother did not hit him as a child.

 As they waited for their swim instructor to meet them, Bakugou recalled his mother comforting the sniffling toddler on her lap. She had told him that humans have evolved to the point that their instinct to hold their breath underwater was so strong that babies do it naturally without being taught. If they could manage such a feat, then two strong boys could do it even better. Those words seemed to give Deku the confidence needed to continue the lesson. But for Bakugou, those words stuck with him.

 As Bakugou uselessly struggles against the restraints on his arms and legs, he now knows that his mother had severely underplayed the reality of drowning. It’s not just that humans evolved to possess strong instincts to prevent drowning. It’s that our fear of dying overcomes the absolute agony of running out of air. No matter how desperate the drowning person is, they refuse to inhale until they’re on the verge of losing consciousness. It’s only at this point when there’s so much carbon dioxide in the blood and so little oxygen that the chemical sensors in the brain trigger an involuntary breath. Sort of a neurological optimism, as if the body were saying,   _"Holding our breath is killing us, and breathing in might not kill us, so we might as well breath in."_

 The explosive teen was reaching his own breaking point. Though he still clung to the hope that Compress was going to snap him back any second now or better yet, that one of the other villains would walk in and see what their colleague was doing. There’s just no way that they would go to all this trouble to capture him, only to torture him to death right away.   _‘Is he just going to leave me like this?’_ Bakugou thought desperately.  _‘Is he seriously going to leave me here to die?’_

 And then his body finally gave out on him. Bakugou involuntarily took a deep breath, and a new pain erupted through his body. Barraged with the painful sensation of burning lava being poured into his mouth and windpipe, flooding his lungs, with each shuddering breath. Half conscious and his mind muddled by oxygen depletion, whatever fight he still had was instantly forgotten.

  _`I'm going to die,’_ he thinks to himself as his vision begins to blur and darken at the edges. His ears desperately straining to hear for a snap that would save him from this place. He considered using his quirk; blowing himself up had to be better than getting killed by a villain in this nightmare. His lungs burned, and his eyes watered in frustration.   _‘Fuck, I’m actually going to die here.’_

 

 …….

 

  _‘I’m don’t want to die!’_

 

 ……..

 

  **_SNAP!_ **

 

 Bakugou sprung awake with a start. Immediately sitting up in his bed, his hands uselessly shoots to his throat as he continued to have trouble breathing even upon waking. His body betraying him by forcibly seizing up his throat to prevent the nonexistent threat from suffocating him, ironically blocking the flow of air into his desperate lungs.

 “Bakugou!” A panicked voice exclaims, another body shooting up beside him. The person takes a deep breath to composes himself. “Hold your breath for a few seconds and then try to exhale slowly,” the voice says again in a soothing tone, cutting into his frantic mind. The equally comforting sensation of a steady hand rubbing his back accompanying the instructions. Even in his crazed state, Bakugou focuses on the familiar words, obeying them willingly. After exhaling, he finds that his body has loosened up enough for him to begin inhaling.

 “That’s it. In two, out four okay?” the voice continues to encourage, pulling him a little closer. The only response is a weak nod. The death grip Bakugou has on the front of his tank top, loosening slightly with each breath. He cracks one of his crimson eyes open--eyes he didn’t realize were still closed. He slowly blinks through the water tears, while his eyes adjust to the first rays of morning light, which basked his room in a bluish tint. To his left sits his best friend in the whole world, Kirishima Eijiro. Though, considering their current position, that’s probably an understatement.

 It takes another ten minutes of labored breathing before Bakugou’s breath was back to normal. Exhausted, he immediately lies back down on the bed. An arm sprawled over his face, hiding his eyes from view. Frustrated by this whole ordeal.

 “You wanna talk about it?” the redhead asked awkwardly.

 “No,” was the immediate response. Silence filled the room for a moment before he lifted his arm just enough to peak at the other boy on the bed. Kirishima look conflicted, but he held his tongue. Honoring Bakugou’s wishes. The ash-blonde rolled his eyes. “I’ll tell you later, okay?”

 The other boy nodded. Deciding to drop the subject for now. “Well, I’m glad I was here to help you out, Bakugou,” Kirishima said with a sleepy smile.

 The ash-blonde just grunted his thanks. About to push the memory of the incident to the back of his mind when he realized something. “You sure responded fast,” Bakugou pointed out skeptically. Forcing his tired body back into a sitting position to study his friend. “Normally, it takes a lot more to wake you up on a Monday morning. What gives?”

 “Oh yeah, about that…” the redhead began, averting his gaze from the explosive teen. “I was kinda already up. I, uh… well, I …uh..”

 “Spit it out, Shitty-Hair,” Bakugou ordered through grit teeth. Careful to keep the usual venom out of his voice.

 Kirishima’s eyes darted around the room. Looking for something to distract the other teen with, but eventually bowed his head in defeat. “I couldn’t sleep. I had a nightmare as well.”

 Bakugou let out a frustrated hiss. “Another one?” he asked in annoyed disbelief. It was bad enough that he was experiencing these near-nightly nuisances, but now Kirishima as well. This was starting to get out of hand.

 It’s been months since the kidnapping, but Bakugou’s nightmares have only gotten worse and were becoming more frequent. He supposes he probably should have gone to see someone after the incident, to help work through these complicated feelings he’s been experiencing. But his stubbornness and pride just wouldn’t let him.

 It would have been a completely different story had his parents, pro-heroes, and teachers knew what truly happened when he was captured. Had they known he had been tortured, they would no doubt have forced him to get help. But they gave up on the idea to send him to a counselor with minimal persuading on Bakugou’s part. He remembers feeling a little disappointed at how easily they gave up on him.

  “It’s not so bad. I see Midnight-sensei every week about it, so I’ll be better in no time!” the ball of sunshine promised with a toothy smile. Kirishima gently takes Bakugou’s hand in his, squeezing it reassuringly. “You know, you could come for a session too. It might feel good to get some stuff off your chest?” Kirishima prompted gently, giving Bakugou’s hand another squeeze.

 The explosive teen doesn’t make a move to take his hand back from him. Just staring absentmindedly at the All Might poster on his wall. Taking comfort from the warmth from Kirishima's hand, in his own. After his second fight with Deku and learning about how he inherited All Might’s quirk, One For All, Bakugou was understandably upset. Disappointed that his favorite hero chose someone else to inherit his power and helped set the path for Deku to become his successor. While Bakugou basically put All Might on the fast track to his retirement because he was careless enough to get captured. Even though his teacher promised that his retirement was inevitable; that it would have happened anyway. Bakugou still couldn’t help but feel like complete and utterly like crap.

 Feeling vulnerable, he wanted to tell All Might about the events that happened when he was captured. Not even caring if that damn nerd overheard. Though when he looked into his favorite hero’s sad eyes and small, fragile form, he hesitated. Bakugou felt like that knowledge would send him over the edge. That it would break whatever fighting spirit, he had left. All Might had already told him that he felt personally responsible for Bakugou being taken in the first place. That his only solace was that he was retrieved unharmed. How would he react when he found out that wasn’t the case? So to protect his childhood hero, Bakugou held his tongue.

 After Aizawa lectured them that night, Bakugou stumbled blindly to his room. Hot, frustrated tears blurring his vision. He wanted to scream about the helplessness he felt. The unfairness of it all. All these secrets eating him up alive. Having already confided that Deku’s secret all these months was hell and now being saddled with even more was becoming too much. Hesitating outside his door, he made the bold decision to walk over to the door next to his. Knocking lightly before he had the chance to chicken out.

 The explosive teen didn’t bother to wipe the tears from his face. He knew Kirishima well enough to know that he wouldn’t judge him for his vulnerable state or gossip about it with anyone afterward. That would be unmanly after all. Bakugou just needed to be comforted and share a few painful memories with someone he could trust. Someone strong enough to help him carry it. Thus began the near-nightly tradition of sleeping in the same room to ward off the onslaught of nightmares the explosive teen experienced.

 Bakugou’s eyes moved from the poster to the handheld in his. To this day, Kirishima was the only one he had ever told about his kidnapping. True to his word, Kirishima never breathed a word to anyone else, though he would occasionally encourage him to speak with someone else about it. Over time, their platonic sleepovers turned into something they were still trying to figure out. This new relationship seemed to keep the terrible memories at bay for a while. One of the only good things to come out of this whole situation. But of course, it wasn’t long before the other shoe dropped.

 Kirishima’s near-death experience with Kendo Rappa prompted his own series of nightmares, which of course, brought back Bakugou’s as well. To the point that if one had a bad dream one night, then the other would have one the next night. Until eventually, if either of them felt the other one experiencing a horrible nightmare in their sleep, it would stimulate their own. Desperate, they had attempted to sleep apart one night, and Kirishima had woken up screaming violently. He had lost control of his quirk--completely destroying his bed. This, in turn, caused a mass panic throughout the dorms, which is what landed him in weekly counselor sessions with Midnight-sensei.

 The ash-blonde stood to his feet. His hand slipping out of Kirishima’s hold. “I think it’s too late for that now,” the blonde responded coolly. His expression was difficult to read. Bakugou quickly walked over to his closet and began gathering his clothes for his morning run. Eager to run off some of his nerves. He looks over at the redhead, who still made no move to get off the bed. The look on his face troubled as he ran a hand through his crimson locks. Those sad puppy-dog eyes looking defeatedly at the floor, made Bakugou feel a pang of guilt. “But I’ll think about it, alright?” he quickly added, pulling a fresh shirt over his head.

 That did the trick. Kirishima’s face immediately brightened up. “That’s great, man! You won't regret it!” Kirishima cheered excitedly, springing to his feet. Quickly making his way to the door before the ash-blonde could change his mind.

 “Oi! I didn’t agree to it yet. I said I’d think about it,” the blonde reminded irritably, trying to grab Kirishima’s arm before he made his way out the door. But the redhead dodged his attempts by throwing a pillow at his face. The poor pillow was immediately blown to hell, leaving Bakugou standing stunned in the charred feathery aftermath. His expression quickly morphing into one of murderous intent.

 “I’ll clean that up later!” Kirishima yelped, quickly vanishing through the door before he could be blown up as well.

 An enormous explosion shook the room as a result. “THE HELL YOU WILL!!!!!” Bakugou yelled, no doubt, waking the entire building with the ferocity of both his explosion and his threat. He felt like he was going to chip a tooth with how hard he was gritting his teeth to keep from blowing everything in sight. This was already proving to be an irritating day. ‘Fuck!’ Bakugou thought to himself angrily. Deciding that the best thing to do would be to run some of these frustrations away. So he quickly finished getting ready and stomped out of the building. Glaring and flipping off the few curious heads that poked out of their rooms as he passed.

 

 The common room was starting to fill up by the time he made it back from his run. Feeling a little better after burning off his excess energy. He was still pissed at Kirishima for pulling that stunt that morning. And he was definitely going to force Shitty-Hair to clean up every last feather from his room. No matter how long it took him to do it.

 Bakugou ignored everyone as he made his way to the locker rooms for a quick shower. During his run, Aizawa sensei had sent out a text message through their Class group chat, instructing them to be dressed in their P.E. clothes and to meet him on the training grounds next to the dorms instead of the classroom. Most of his classmates spoke excitedly with each other, wondering the reason for the last-minute change. However, he could also feel a few glances thrown in his direction, no doubt from his explosion this morning. Though he was too tired to care.

 Bakugou would never admit it aloud, but he really needed to get his shit together. This lack of sleep situation he found himself in was starting to have negative effects on his life. His performance in the hero exercises was beginning to get downright sloppy. Even worse was that others were starting to notice as well. The first was Deku. Not all that surprising considering his near stalkerish obsession with him. But a few glares sent his direction is enough to keep him from saying anything about it aloud. Next was the other members of his squad. Mostly, just needless teasing from Dunce Face and Soy Sauce, though a few colorful threats silence them up pretty fast. No, the worst offenders were that damn IcyHot and that annoying frog. They just say whatever comes to mind, without any regard to who is listening. And before you know it, the whole class is looking at him like he’s not the best person here anymore.

  _‘Damn extras.’_  All the sideways glances and whispering about him was getting on his nerves. Coupling that with his sleep-deprived mind was a recipe for disaster. It didn’t take much to set the ash-blonde off these days. He’d nearly killed that sparkling nitwit when he had the gall to insult his cooking, saying it wasn’t “Up to par” with his french ass standards. And he eats fucking plain mayonnaise sandwiches. Talk about disgusting. It took his whole gang plus Uraraka to keep him from murdering that sparkling asshole. Since then, most of the class stayed clear of him. A shame since he was starting to make progress acting civilly with his classmates.

 The common room was alive with lots of yelling and stern hand gestures when Bakugou reentered the room. “What the hell is going on?” he asks in a bored tone. Coming to stand beside Jirou on the outskirts of the chaos. Other students gathering around to see what the racket was about.

 She lets out a snicker. “Someone spiked Iida’s shampoo with Kirishima’s hair dye.” Sure enough, in the middle of the group is a furious Iida. His usual navy blue locks, now a bright Purple. Currently trying to calm him down was Ponytail, Icyhot, and Round Face, though the latter was also trying to stop herself from laughing at his absurd appearance. Jirou snaps a couple of photos before continuing, “Must have happened sometime last night and money’s on your squad being responsible,” she finished with a grin.

 Her words made it apparent that there was a running bet on this, and she was prying for inside knowledge. He did not doubt that his squad probably did it. He overheard Horns saying that they were going to play truth or dare after their movie night in her room. But as for who specifically was responsible, he had no idea. His crimson eyes scanned the crowd and noticed that Birdbrain, Octopus, and the Purple Pest not so casually eavesdropping on their conversation.

 “How big is the pot?” he asked curiously.

 “$530 so far. Though a few are still deciding on who to bet on,” Jirou replied with a grin. Taking it as a good sign that Bakugou appeared to be interested. “Everyone betting believes that your squad is involved. Mostly they're betting to see how quickly Aizawa-sensei gives them detention for it.”

 “The runt says that Kaminari will spin some tale claiming his innocence for at least 10 minutes before Aizawa sensei threatens expulsion.”

 “Hah, not likely. No way he waits that long.”

 The Bass Bitch nods her head in agreement. “Tokoyami says all five of you will get detention in the first 3 minutes of class, and he won't hear any excuses about it.”

 “The Fuck!” Bakugou yells, whirling his head around to glare at his bird faced classmate. Effectively scaring DarkShadow back inside his host. That feat bringing him some satisfaction, but the scowl persists on his face.

 “Calm down before you blow a gasket.”

 “I am fucking calm,” he says through grit teeth. His hands sparkling dangerously. Not sure if he’s more annoyed by being told to calm down or the sass he’s currently getting served with.

 “Whatever you say, Hotshot,” she teases, twirling one of her earphone jacks. Jirou’s currently on pretty good terms with the class hothead, but that doesn't mean she's immune to his wrath if she riles him up too much. She decides it's in her best interest to let up for now. Better to be safe than sorry. “Meanwhile, Shoji thinks just the idiot four will get detention within the first 5 minutes of class, but that Kirishima is going to get in the most trouble since it's his hair dye.”

 Bakugou scowls at that. He knows for a fact that Shitty-Hair didn’t do it, but he had to admit that the octopus had a point. Punishing all responsible was definitely within the realm of possibilities as far as Aizawa was concerned. Even if that meant punishing someone who didn’t play an active role in the prank. If you thought about it like that, then Aizawa would be justified in holding someone responsible if they were unfortunate enough to not keep track of their belongings. Especially when acquainted with such a mischievous group of friends. So far, that was the bet to beat.

 “What are you betting on?”

 “I like to do some research before I place a bet,” she answers with a grin. She stands on her toes to shoot a smug look at the eavesdropping boys over Bakugou’s shoulder. “And I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t hoping to pick your brain before placing one. You did help me win me a bunch of money last time.”

 Bakugou smirks at the memory. He had persuaded her to bet against her best friend in the class’s “Late Night Sweet’s Eating Contest.” Everyone was betting on either Big Lips or Ponytail, which would generally be a no brainer, except everyone overlooked one thing. Mina Ashido was a closet sugar-fiend. It was a well-known fact in the Bakusquad that Mina’s room was always stocked full of all sorts of sweets. Everything from pop tarts to complete packages of cupcakes. An ungodly stash that she had to replace almost daily. People always wondered why she was always so energetic? It might have something to do with the 20 pixie sticks she downs for breakfast every day. Luckily, she works that sugar out of her system; otherwise, there would be no way she would be fit enough to be a hero. He recalls telling Horns to lay off the sweets and eat a salad for once. She just giggled, saying, “But that’s what makes me so sweet~” Needless to say, Jirou made a killing during that bet. And Bakugou was paid handsomely in return.

 “I want my usual cut,” the ash-blonde whispered so only she could hear. Bakugou's right hand sparking up a little, just in case Shoji was listening in. Jirou rolled her eyes but nodded anyway. “You’ll win big if you place your money on just the moron Musketeers getting detention. It’s only going to take him 10 seconds to pass judgment once Aizawa spots Four-Eye’s purple hair. He’s gotta know by now that I wouldn’t go along with something stupid enough to get me detention and that Shitty-Hair would’ve confessed if he had.”

 “You really think you two are getting off scot-free?”

 “We better. If not, the class is going to be short 3 people. I’ll make sure of that.” He makes a stronger blast to emphasize his threat, but both of them know that there was no way he could kill them or anyone in their class.

 “You better be right about this,” she says with a shrug. Jirou starts to make her way over to place her bet with Tail, who has been declared the official bet keeper. But she stops after a few steps, looking back at him over her shoulder. “I assume our usual terms still stand if you’re wrong?”

A low growl escapes Bakugou’s lips. “I’m not gonna be wrong. But yeah, I’ll make your dinners for a month.”

 “Just checking,” she says before disappearing into the crowd surrounding Tail. Looks like Belly Button, Round Face, and even Icyhot were getting in on the action as well. Opting to abandon the class president, who was in full lecture mode.

 With the opportunity of a couple hundred bucks coming his way, he heads to the kitchen to find something to eat with a smug look on his face. There’s no time to eat a real meal, so he grabs an apple off the counter. Washing it off quickly before heading out the front doors where a sheepish Kirishima is waiting for him.

 “Hey, Bakugou,” the redhead greeted, testing his friend’s mood. “Want to walk together?”

 The hothead crunched on his apple loudly. Grunting a gruff, “Whatever,” in-between bites. Not bothering to stop, but slowed his pace for the redhead to catch up with him as they made their way to class.

“What do you think we’re gonna be doing in class today?” Kirishima asked excitedly. Falling into step with his best friend.

 “Something annoying probably,” he grumbled irritably. Realizing how sharp his words were, he made a conscious effort to reign that grouchiness in. In a friendlier tone, he added, “It’s almost winter, so were most likely getting introduced on the next main subject of the semester. Those usually involve a big outside lesson.”

 Kirishima nodded in agreement. Seemingly unphased by his grouchy mood. “I hope we get to do some sparring. I would love to brawl with someone!” he slammed his hardened fists together for emphasis. “I’d also like a chance to improve my Unbreakable form as well. I’m still having trouble moving while in it.” His tone is cheerful, but it hitches ever so slightly. Betraying his anxiousness to become stronger as fast as possible. It was so subtle that Bakugou doubted that Kirishima even noticed it himself.

 “You could try dodging my AP Shot Auto-Cannon,” Bakugou half-joked in an attempt to lighten the mood. The tips of his lip perking up into a devious smirk.

 Completely oblivious, the ball of sunshine took it as a legitimate offer from a fellow bro. “Thanks, Bakugou!”

 “Kirishima, no,” Sero pipes in out of nowhere, falling into step with his trusting friend. Shaking his head in exasperation at his friend’s too sweet for his own good nature. “It’s like you want Bakugou to kill you. Honestly, I have no idea how you’re still alive.”

 “Noone fucking asked you, TapeArms,” Bakugou yelled, throwing the apple core at his nosy friend. Sero easily dodges. His onyx eyes trailing the apple as it passes his face to see it land beautifully in the bright yellow compost bin they just passed.

 This makes the two idiots burst out laughing.“I don’t understand how you do everything perfectly. I can’t even tease you about littering,” Sero wheezes through his laughing fit. Bakugou just flips him off in response, not bothering to wait for them as they struggle to compose themselves. The whole while, contemplating how he got stuck with these sorry excuses for friends.

 Most of their class was already gathered when they arrive at the designated spot. They immediately spot Kaminari and Mina getting lectured by Aizawa-sensei. While Sero tries to hide in the crowd, Sensei’s capture weapon instantly grabs him by the ankles and drags him front and center like a scene from a horror movie. Meanwhile, their teacher doesn’t give Bakugou or Kirishima so much a second glance.

 A smug look crosses his features as a wad of cash is immediately waved in front of his face. “Thanks for the help,” Jirou's voice stated smugly beside them.

 "Um, what’s going on?” Kirishima asks, confused. His face looking from Bakugou to Jirou, both of which currently busy counting their winnings.

 “Just profiting from our dumb friends,” Bakugou replies, smugly. His crimson eyes slowly narrowing in confusion. He looks back at the stack in Jirou’s hands. “You sure you counted this, right? This is over $600.” Bakugou asks, quickly recounting the stack of cash in his hands.

 Jirou looked absolutely offended. “Hey, I know I have some trouble with math, but I don’t completely suck at it either.” Any other person and she would have used her EarJack attack, but she wanted to live, so she didn’t. Regaining some composure, she explained, “Todoroki made a large bet that you would end up getting detention too somehow.”

 “Damn IcyHot,” Bakugou muttered. He had half a mind to give him a blast to the face just for good measure, but the steady hardened hand on his shoulder kept him firmly rooted in place. So he instead stewed in his irritation silently. Hoping beyond hope that they were about to do some sparring so he could beat some extras into the ground. 

 “You should be happy that his betting instincts are crap. He’s rich, so he can afford to make them, which is better for   _us.”_

 “Yeah yeah,” was the gruff response, obviously still fuming about it.

 She just rolled her eyes at his needless temper. Waving goodbye to Kirishima, she made her way over to Momo, who gently scolded her for betting on their classmates' misfortune. Though as Jirou fanned herself with her winnings, while whispering something they couldn’t hear, she quickly had the rich girl bouncing slightly on her heels in excitement. Bakugou still couldn’t figure out what the hell their relationship was. His crimson eyes glanced at Kirishima in time to see the redhead's smile dim ever so slightly at the open display of affection.   _‘Crap. I better focus on figuring out what our relationship is instead of wondering about these extras,’ Bakugou_  thought a little guiltily.

 “Attention class!” the underground hero began, his voice breaking through the surrounding student's mindless chatter. Done lecturing the idiot brigade over their childish prank. Iida looking a little dejected as well. No doubt, having received his own lecture for interrupting a teacher again. It was at this time that Bakugou realized that standing patiently on the other side of their teacher were four other students. Going off of the murmuring that was spreading across his classmates, he wasn’t the only one to finally notice their presence. The hero hushed them all again loudly before continuing. “You’re probably wondering why I called you out here today.

  “Up until now, we’ve concentrated on learning the basic techniques needed to be a hero; by strengthening your quirks and gaining your Provincial Licenses. Now we’re going to start the next phase: Adaptability.” This revelation earned him a few confused looks as well as some nervous murmuring, but their teacher ignored it. Continuing without missing a beat. “This is one of the most important qualities a hero can possess. In this ever-changing profession and the infinite amount of unique quirks in the world. You have to be prepared for anything at a moment's notice.”

 “Like expect the unexpected?” Hagakure offered.

 Aizawa nodded. “I’m sure you all can imagine a situation where you weren’t able to use your quirk the way you normally would. Whether that was from an opponent's quirk advantage over you, a harmful environment, being physically restrained, or something blocking your quirk entirely,” Aizawa says, his eyes flashing to life. Effectively scaring half of his students. The effects of his cancelation quirk still having a noticeable effect over Bakugou, despite him not producing any explosions at the moment. Feeling more like some sort of static disconnect, blocking him from a treasured part of himself. The hero let them stew in his overwhelming gaze for a few extra seconds longer than necessary before slowly blinking his eyes back to normal. The whole class sighing in relief.    

 “But this is no excuse for you to give up. A hero can always break out of a tough spot. In this line of work, you either adapt or you die.” Usually, Aizawa would say that with a sadistic grin on his face, though this time, his expression remained dark and unreadable. Sero and Kaminari let out awkward chuckles, while others in the class shared anxious looks. Wondering if this was yet another playful ruse or if they were actually in danger of dying.

 Crimson eyes narrowed as they studied their teacher. Trying to figure out what sort of hell they were about to be thrown into. His hands burning at the memory of plunging them into boiling water for days straight.   _‘I can handle anything he throws at me. Bring it on!’_

 “What sort of training will we be doing?” Round Face asked for the class.

 “Are we really going to die?” Kaminari blurted out. Fear clearly reflecting in his golden eyes. His matching hair standing up a little from the accidental activation of his quirk. Aizawa, of course, ignored his question.

 “I will be creating various scenarios for you to represent unfavorable conditions that you could one day find yourselves in. During this phase, you will be trained to quickly assess the worst-case scenario and find a way out of it,” He paused for a moment, before continuing. “Unlike previous years, we’re going to do something a little different. We’re going to continue establishing the techniques needed to use your quirks effectively, but also techniques useful in situations where it could be dangerous to use your quirk.” This earned a few gasps from the class. They have never been told not to use their beloved quirks before. Some students looked around uneasily, a few of note included Tokoyami and Todoroki.

 “We’re not going to be using our quirks?” Mina gasped loudly. Her arms wrapped around herself protectively as if Aizawa had a way to strip her of her quirk completely. “Like at all?”

 Bakugou felt like someone had dumped ice in his veins. Adrenaline causing his hands to sweat more than usual, as if his quirk itself refused to be forced onto the sidelines ever again. It took all of his willpower not to spark his quirk to life. He didn’t need these damn extras to know just how terrified he was to not be able to use his quirk. Memories of his capture threatened to overtake him, but the faint touch of Kirishima’s hand brushing up against his helped him stay grounded to reality. He forced himself to take slow deep breaths before a panic attack could be triggered. _‘Like hell, I’m going to do that.’_

 “I believe I've already explained that we will be training for worst-case scenarios?” Aizawa yawns, acting like he was discussing weather patterns instead of the terrifying thought of fighting without a quirk. His dark eyes suddenly harden and become serious as he looks over his students. “To a Hero, not having their quirk--or more likely-- not being able to use their quirk in the field is a detrimental blow. I should know.” Fortunately, he just points to his eyes this time instead of scaring them with his quirk. This was most likely to avoid drying out his eyes rather than worrying about their well being. “Most of my victories are decided early on in a match, not because I erased an opponent's quirk, but because they didn’t have the foresight to plan for the possibility of their quirk becoming obsolete. More often than not, they panic or give up entirely. Securing my victory.”

 His right hand comes up to take hold of his capture weapon. Fingers lacing through multiple layers of the ingenious weapon he had created when he was their age. “I, on the other hand, have trained extensively to be able to fight in circumstances where my quirk is rendered useless. I understand my shortcomings and have moved beyond them. It’s time for you all to do the same.”

 Anxiousness makes room for a determination as the class is inspired by their homeroom teacher's words. Choosing to abandon their fears by accepting his challenge to grow and move forward. Even Bakugou feels something stir within him. Even feeling a twinge of excitement at the prospect of crushing whatever weaknesses he might have. Kirishima, mirroring his feelings, by slamming his fists together beside him. Somewhere behind him, he can hear Urakara do her best Gunhead impression and to his left see’s a floating girl's uniform jumping up and down.  

  _‘Maybe this won’t be so bad,’_  Bakugou allowed himself to think.

 Aizawa himself seems pleased by their reactions, for he lets a smile spread across his face. Allowing his students to calm down on their own before continuing. “To help me do that, these four will be joining our class for the remainder of the semester,” Aizawa announced, motioning to the students beside him. There’s complete silence for a few seconds before the class erupts with surprised shrieks at this new revelation. Students yelling over each other with countless questions that even Aizawa’s terrifying expression has difficulty calming.

 “What did he say?’

 “You’ve got to be kidding me!

 “Are some of us being transferred out?!”

 “This has to be a trick, right?”

 Bakugou’s eyes zero in on his--apparently--new classmates. Giving them each a good look for the first time since he noticed them at the beginning of class. All four of them were dressed in the same athletic clothes, though only one face was familiar. The always tired looking former general studies student Hitoshi Shinsou stood awkwardly to Aizawa’s immediate right. Beside him stood a girl with friendly sapphire eyes and long brown hair. She wore light blue ribbons on either side of her head. At first glance, she didn’t look like much, ditzy even, since she seemed to be humming a song to herself.

 Next, was a teen with light brown hair and amber eyes. He waited patiently for the class to compose themselves, but the calmness around him was unnerving in this chaotic environment. His face was friendly enough, smiling at those who made eye contact with, but it was clear to Bakugou that he was consciously keeping his distance.

 Lastly, there was a teen with bright orange hair and calculating crimson eyes, which scanned each classmate in turn as if measuring each one up. A mischievous smirk on his face. Bakugou narrowed his own crimson eyes. There was a weird energy that seemed to roll off of the trio. Glancing around at his class, a few others noticed it as well. Deku, Todoroki, Tokoyami, and strangely enough Kaminari as well.

 Ignoring the outbursts of his class, Aizawa continued, “Shinsou was already in the process of transferring to the class after his impressive performance at the Sports Festival. The other three are visitors to our school. Specializing in hand to hand combat, escape tactics and an assortment of weaponry skills. They have offered to teach you these skills to strengthen relations between our school and theirs.”

 “Sensei!” a hand urgently shoots in the air. No one had to look to know it was their kiss ass of a class president. “What school do they come from?”

 “Didn’t I just lecture you for interrupting?" The exhausted teacher sighs. Beginning to lose patience on all the outbursts so early in the morning. The sharp reminder made the hand falter until it rested back at his side. The ash-blonde letting out a condescending snicker at his expense.

 “They’re from Binoshi. A small private school over on the west side of Japan. Unlike our school, where we train students to become heroes. They are trained to become shinobi. Upon graduation, they use the skills they acquired to serve the country in its international affairs.”

 “Wow! I had no idea Shinobi still existed. That’s so manly!” Kirishima exclaims happily beside him. “Did you?” he casually asked his friend, draping an arm over his shoulders.

 “Yeah...shortly after Heroes became a legal profession. Laws were quickly written forbidding people and heroes alike from harming others with their quirks unless absolutely necessary. Still needing a way to defend the country from the rest of the world, the Shinobi were entrusted to protect Japan to keep heroes reputations as a symbol of peace intact,” Bakugou answered in a neutral tone. A trick he learned to divide his attention at school when his mind was occupied with better things. Something Deku annoyingly referred to as, _"Bakugou in neutral."_ While Deku often berated everyone’s ears with unprompted incoherent muttering of his innermost thoughts, Bakugou, in contrast, would provide detailed information in an uncharacteristically calm icy voice. The majority of his attention busy trying to piece all these new pieces of information together. There was definitely a bigger picture here, a motive for everything Aizawa was doing, but he wasn’t able to make sense of all these new developments. 

 Bakugou was well aware that the rest of the class was listening to his explanation with various levels of fascination. Understandable, since they hadn’t covered this topic yet in their International Hero Politics class. “Even though their main objective is to deal with other countries and terrorists, they are sometimes called to aid heroes on dangerous missions because they are allowed to kill their targets. They’re used as human weapons,” he finished darkly. His stomach twisting suddenly reminded of Shigaraki’s horde of Nomu.

 An ominous hush fell over the would-be heroes. Even the four students standing before them squirmed a bit at his words. Aizawa’s scarf conveniently hides the bottom half of his face from view, though it’s evident that he’s frowning. He likely had a kinder way of explaining the Shinobi’s role in society, but that would be some flowery fabrication. Bakugou didn’t care. His classmates would have found out about it easily through a quick online search or in their class later on. Shinobi weren’t villains, but they weren’t heroes either. They were some sort of a grey area in society. _‘A necessary evil.’_ Bakugou scowls at the thought. _‘No, that wasn’t right.’_ Thinking back on his reading, to compensate for their elevated status, Shinobi were severely limited in what they could and couldn’t do. Only able to act through their superior's specific orders. They were just weapons to be utilized until they ceased to exist.

 “That’s technically true. However, the world is constantly changing, making way for new things, while phasing others out,” his homeroom teacher began, cutting off his train of thought. Taking a few steps forward until he stood a few feet in front of them. “The government’s need to use shinobi for the country’s defense was always meant to be a temporary state of affairs. Once they are no longer needed, those in the program will need a new career path.” 

 He waves a hand toward them. “Your interactions with them could easily have real-life ramifications. I ask you this. Would you rather have them as your allies or your enemies? It’s up to you.” All heads turn back to the trio. They stood before them proudly, fiery resolve shining brightly in each of their eyes. 

 “Shinsou, start us off on the introductions.” Aizawa yawned. This was the most talking he’s done in a long time. Though his sleeping bag was nowhere in sight. He’d have to wait for the next period to get a morning nap in.

 The purple-haired insomniac took a hesitant step forward. For a supposed future hero, he didn’t look comfortable with everyone’s attention on him. “I’m Shinsou, obviously. I’ve met some of you at the Sports Festival,” he started awkwardly, running a hand through his hair, which Bakugou just realized was the same shade of purple as Iida’s hair at the moment. “As usual, my luck is craptastic to be joining your class during this craziness. Here’s hoping we survive,” he finishes with a nervous chuckle. Aizawa immediately glared at him, which sends the mind control user scrambling to stand beside Deku. He pats Tail on the shoulder as he passes, whispering something in his ear.

 The brunette jumps when she realizes it’s her turn. She attempts to take a few steps forward but immediately trips over her own feet. The two hands of her comrades instantly grab the back of her shirt before she can faceplant on the ground. A few giggles escape the class before they are silenced by the impressively terrifying glares from the other two shinobi.  

 “Umm... My name is Tohru Honda~” she began nervously, cheeks red with embarrassment. “I hope we can all be friends and do our best this semester. Plus Ultra!” She cheers happily, raising her fist in the air as she says the school motto. The class immediately fawns over her cheerfulness and the weird sing-song way she speaks. Round Face, Horns, and Ponytail’s squealing could be heard from the other side of the class.

 “And you quirk?” Aizawa prompts gently.

 “Oh yeah. Sorry, I forgot~” bowing quickly to her new sensei. “My p-quirk is umm… its Transformation~” she admits self-consciously.

 “What the hell does that mean?” Bakugou mutters half to himself.

 “How about a demonstration?” their teacher offers.

 “Alright~” she responds. “Sorry in advance~” The air around her immediately changes. The ditzy persona quickly replaced with someone more professional. She takes a few steps forward, clapping her hands together and swiftly waving her hands towards the class. As if she were pushing some sort of invisible energy at them. But nothing seems to happen. The silence ringing loudly in their ears.

 “Umm, what was supposed to...” Round Face began to ask, though the astonished looks of her classmates stopped her. Multiple mouths hung open as they gaped at Uraraka. On top of her head were a pair of fluffy light brown cat ears. A matching tail curling around her to display her uneasiness. She mirrored their expressions. “Y-you all have c-cat ears!” she stammered.

 Everyone’s hands flew up to their heads. Sure enough, the whole class was now part cat, even Hagakure had a floating pair on top of her head. The only ones not affected were the ones behind her. Aizawa smiling at his class' expressions and excitement over being transformed into cat-human hybrids. Figures he would like it. He had a soft spot for cats, after all.  

 One of Bakugou’s ears flicked in annoyance, and his fluffed up tail lashed angrily behind him as he tried to control his temper at being turned into something so adorable. He hissed under his breath. Cat instincts apparently being transferred along with this new form. Kirishima, on the other hand, was enjoying it, purring happily as he nuzzled against him. Apparently, a cat’s way to comfort someone in a foul mood.

 Ribbons, as Bakugou would come to call her, dropped the effects with a simple clap of her hands. “My quirk allows me to transform anything in my line of sight into any form I desire as long as I know the physiology behind it. I can also transform the forms of non-living items, but that is trickier for me to do. I’m sorry for using my quirk on you without your permission. I hope you can forgive me~” she bows apologetically. “I will try my best not to use it, but I sometimes have trouble controlling it when I’m flustered~” she admitted sadly, tears threatening to fall down her face. The girls immediately bound forward, enveloping her in a giant group hug. “Of course, we forgive you!” Round Face sniffles. Happy tears flowing freely from her face.

 “We’ll be your friends!” Horns pipes in, pulling her to where she had been standing next to Kaminari and Sero. “Stick with us, and no one mess with you.”

 The brunette’s answering smile was blinding. “Mvto! Thank you!~” she thanked, allowing herself to be dragged off by Mina. The rest of the girls following behind closely, giggling the whole way.

 Next up was the other brunette. Unlike the other two, he remained where he was. “My name is Tsubasa Hitsuzen, though you all can go ahead and refer to by my first name since--,” he pointed to the orange-haired teen beside him, “We share the same last name.”

 “So, your brothers?” Deku asked dumbly. Bakugou rolled his eyes   _‘useless nerd.’_

 He nodded in response. Sharing a look with his brother, who looked aggravated. “Yeah, we're actually twins...”

 “But you look nothing alike,” Kaminari blurted out.

 This seemed to piss the orange-haired kid off, but a stern look from Aizawa-sensei kept him from murdering Dunce Face right then and there. Tsubasa laughed awkwardly before explaining lamely, “We’re fraternal.”

 “As for my quirk,” he continued, rolling his shoulders slightly. His eyes slowly turning a silvery blue. And just like that, two large feathered wings slowly emerged from his back. Carefully coming through the thin slits made in his clothes and stretching out until they reached their full length. The class stared in awe. The feathers themselves were a reddish-brown color with darker patches striping them. The longer feathers along the edges becoming a brighter orangish-red, reminiscent of a red-tailed hawks tail feathers.

 He flapped them once, and a large gust of wind was sent their way. Making the already chilly air twice as cold. Sending shivers down their spines. The gust was powerful enough that they had to hold their ground or risk being whisked away like the Purple-Pest. However, as the runt was flung back several feet, thanks to his small size, the wind changed its intensity. Grabbing hold of the now screeching grape and gently lowered him to the ground. Looking back, the winged teen’s hand was held out in front of him. Effectively controlling the air around him. “My quirk is called Tengu. Apart from being able to fly, I’m able to control the wind created by my wings.”

 Bakugou’s scowl deepened. _‘So his name is Tsubasa, and he has a winged quirk as well?’_ he thought to himself, reminded of his other childhood friend named Tsubasa. He can feel Deku’s concerned gaze on him, but he ignores it. No doubt thinking something that doesn’t matter. _Their_ Tsubasa abandoned them without so much as a goodbye. It’s the name and quirk of someone not worth remembering. This one will be no different.

 “Thank you for welcoming us into your class. Let’s try our best this semester,” He finished with a bow before making his way into the crowd. Octopus and Birdbrain giving him a quick greeting when he comes to stand beside them.

 “Finally, it’s my turn!” The crimson eyed teen smirked, taking a few steps forward. His movements incredibly smooth and graceful, despite his hands in his pockets. This guy radiated a powerful aura, piquing Bakugou’s interest. “The name’s Kyo Hitsuzen. Remember it, cause I’m gonna be the one beatin’ lessons into ya this semester,” he said with a sadistic smile on his face, giving the class a good look at his unusually sharp canines, though nowhere near Kirishima’s level. Just like his brother, he spoke in an unusual accent, though Kyo seemed to speak some sort of slang version. Aizawa shot him a stern look. They seemed to be having some kind of silent conversation before Kyo brought his attention back to the class. “As for my quirk… I’m not gonna tell you.” He finished with a mischievous smile.

 “Kyo…” Aizawa warned, stepping forward.

 Kyo _‘t_ ** _sked’_** in annoyance. “Aizawa-sensei, you've tasked us with preparing your students for the future. You just told them that the most difficult part of a fight is adaptin’ to an unknown enemy. Why spoil the fun by announcin’ our quirks when it can be turned into an exercise?” Aizawa frowns, thinking it over. Taking his silence as permission to continue, Kyo addresses the class directly. “How about it? Any of you brave enough to take me on?”

 “I’ll knock you down a peg,” Bakugou declares, calmly stepping forward. His classmates scrambling to get out of his way. Knowing full well that nothing on this earth is scarier than a calm Bakugou Katsuki. His crimson eyes brimming with so much intensity that its a wonder that Kyo hasn’t erupted into flames. “Don’t hold it against me if you end up dying.”

 The shinobi just smiles wider, cocking his head to one side. “Likewise,” he purrs, finally taking his hands out of his pockets. Dropping into a dangerous stance, his arms ready to defend and attack at the same time. “Though that all depends if you can even lay a finger on me.”

 


	3. Heroes vs. Shinobi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's a slight chill in the air with the changing of the seasons, as Class 1A watched two destructive powers stalk each other around the training ground. Two pairs of crimson eyes silently measuring up their opponents.

 

_ The shinobi just smiles wider, cocking his head to one side.  _

_ “Likewise,” he purrs, finally taking his hands out of his pockets. Dropping into a dangerous stance, his arms ready to defend and attack at the same time. “Though that all depends if you can even lay a finger on me.”  _

 

**_ Bakugou P. O. V. _ **

 There's a slight chill in the air with the changing of the seasons, as Class A watched two destructive powers stalk each other around the training ground. Two pairs of crimson eyes silently measuring up their opponents. No one in the audience dared make a sound as the seconds dragged on. The tension in the air smothering as they waited for the inevitable booms of Bakugou's devastating explosions. It might have been their nerves, but the area around them already felt warmer.

  Bakugou was uncharacteristically calm, which terrified his classmates. He usually would charge in, explosions blazing. Perhaps he finally learned his lesson after failing to get his Provincial License. Deku watched his childhood friend facing off against an unknown enemy. His body crouched in his usual stance, ready to pounce with deadly accuracy, but still, he held his attack. Deku, of course, had a few theories as to why he would behave like this, though there was no way to be sure until the scene before him played out.

**_ "Though that all depends if you can even lay a finger on me,"  _ **  The shinobi's words echoed in the ash blonde's head again as the teens circle each other for the third time. The playful smirk was never leaving Kyo's face. Only growing larger as he continued to circle the Beast of Class 1A. He was baiting him, that much was clear. He wanted Bakugou to lose his cool. To charge in blindly and fall prey to his quirk. But taunts don't work on Bakugou.   _ ‘I'm going to do more than lay a finger on you. I'm going to wipe the smug look off your face,'   _ Bakugou vowed silently.

 He narrowed his eyes, focusing on the teen's movements. They were incredibly fluid and precise. Not an ounce of energy wasted in anything he does. No doubt achieved through years of experience in the field. Despite Bakugou's natural ability, that's not something he could ever hope to emulate in the measly months he's been at UA. That already puts him at a considerable disadvantage. Not to mention his rival's most significant advantage over him. The fact that Bakugou has no idea what this kid's quirk was and that he probably knows Bakugou's thanks to the Sports Festival being broadcast across Japan.   _ ‘Well, I've never shied away from a challenge,'  _  he thought with a grin.

 Before they could circle their makeshift arena for the fifth time, Bakugou lunges forward suddenly, swinging his usual right hook. Though this time, he aimed for the ground instead of attacking his opponent directly. Filling the air with thick smoke and ungodly heat, which immediately enveloped his opponent. The powerful blast sends the resulting debris flying towards the hidden shinobi at devastating speeds. Projectiles, he won't be able to see until they pelt him within the smokescreen. Without pausing, Bakugou aims another explosive swing where he believes Kyo is but hits nothing but air.

Before Bakugou can regain his bearings, something heavy abruptly hits him in the gut, almost knocking the wind out of him. His reaction was delayed thanks to the smoke from his own attacks. The hothead is thrown back from the force of the blow but recovers enough to slide to a stop. Resisting the urge to check on the injury. He glares daggers at the cloud of smoke, slowly dissipating to reveal a slightly disheveled teen crouched incredibly low to the ground. Having dodged or reflected most of the debris. A piece of rubble tossed playfully up and down in one of his hands.

 "Come on. That can't be everything you've got?"

 "Of course not! I'm just getting started!" the ash-blonde assured with a sadistic grin, raising his hands towards Kyo. His classmate's paling as they realized he was preparing for one of his AP shots. A devastating barrage of explosions was unleashed on the orange-haired teen as Bakugou used one of his new special moves, his AP Shot: Auto-cannon. "Now die!"

 As much as Bakugou hated to admit it. This punk was good. Kyo had managed to dodge most of the blasts by using pieces of rubble to detonate some of his explosions early before it had a chance to reach him. Only his clothes seemed to be taking a beating, as they were torn in places from a mixture of explosions and shrapnel. While his attacks weren't actually inflicting physical damage, they were still working out as planned.

 While Kyo was busy dodging his attacks, Bakugou manages to momentarily catch the shinobi off guard when the explosive teen suddenly emerges from the smoke of a tactfully placed blast used to hinder the shinobi's line of sight. Kyo's crimson eyes widened in surprise as the ash-blonde sparks his palms to life, ready to shove it right in his smug face. Kyo had barely jumped back in time.

 Bakugou had been studying the shinobi carefully throughout the fight. Determining that his long-range attacks were too slow to work against his opponent, with how effortlessly they were dodged. The shinobi's speed was simply too great. And once you coupled that with his insane reaction time, there was only one course of action left. ‘  _ Get in close and beat the crap out of him!' _

 Testing the shinobi's speed wasn't the only reason he pelted him with a barrage of explosions. Bakugou was slowly herding him closer to his classmates, to cut off his escape route to the rear. Noticing how he often retreated by jumping backward instead of to the sides. There should be a split second where the shinobi's attention falters as he realizes the change in his surroundings. And Bakugou plans to exploit that weakness. Using his feet to kick off the ground for more speed to close the distance between them. However, the instant he picks up his foot, Kyo's eyes snapped back to him, a knowing grin spreading across his face. It is then that Bakugou knows he fucked up.

Kyo sidesteps out of the way for the first time. His feet were creating slight drag marks in the sand. Bakugou's sparkling palms had nearly smashed into a terrified Deku. His anger towards the nerd delaying his reactions. At the last second, Bakugou flips his wrist towards the sky to stop his momentum by using an explosion to force himself to land. Causing him to "accidentally" stomp violently on one of Deku's feet in the process, earning him a satisfying shriek. But hey, that's better than an exploding palm to the face. "Sorry, Nerd," he mutters, his eyes still locked on Kyo. At the same time, Bakugou thrusts another explosion at the shinobi with his other arm. The orange-haired teen had barely evaded the near point-blank attack and skidding to a stop a few feet away. The fabric around his shoulder scorched and falling apart. The front of Deku's clothes was also singed ever so slightly, but thankfully no burns to show for it.

 "Whew, that was close!" Kyo whistled, pulling at the disintegrating fabric on his shoulder. It was coming apart in his hands, to reveal the beginnings of a burn underneath. "But you're gonna have to try harder if you actually wanna touch me."

 Bakugou doesn't bother replying. Not willing to get roped into his taunts. He continues to release a series of fast close-range explosions. The shinobi seems content to keep dodging his attacks, confident that he won't get hit. Not even bothering to block them with his arms. Gritting his teeth, Bakugou unleashes an erratic volley of explosions. Testing Kyo's defenses by continuously fluctuating the intensity and range of each one. Throwing in numerous feints and kicks to try and trip him up. The explosive teen's body on auto-pilot as his mind focuses on working through his options with lightning speed.

_ 'Speed's not his quirk,'  _  the explosive hero mused to himself. While Kyo's speed was impressive, as a quirk, he could think of many that were faster. His eyes zero in on the sweat starting to glisten on his opponent's brow and the tenseness of his muscles. He was beginning to tire and slow down. A quirk wouldn't be giving out so soon, at least it shouldn't be with someone so skilled. Bakugou risked a glance at his classmates, zeroing in on where the shinobi's brother was standing beside Tokoyami and Shoji. 

_ ‘Does he have some sort of wind manipulation quirk like his brother?'  _  he theorized since families tend to have similar quirks. Children either manifesting a parent’s quirk or their parent's quirks will merge to create a new quirk, as was the case with Bakugou. An air quirk could explain how he could move with such fluid movements and dodge with little energy expended, however…. His eyes scanned the smoke blowing lazily around them. Any wind manipulation would affect the smoke, which wasn't happening at the moment.

_ ‘No, he just hasn't used it yet,'  _  the thought baffled him. How could he possibly last this long without using his quirk? Especially since Bakugou's been doing everything he could to blast him to pieces.   _ ‘Is he waiting for me to wear myself out?'  _  If his quirk is super powerful, it could be exhausting to use after a long period. While that would typically be a good strategy, that doesn't quite work against Bakugou, considering his quirk only gets stronger with the more sweat he accumulates. He grins, this gives him an idea.

 Bakugou aims another normal swing at his classmate's face. The Shinobi casually moves out of the way as usual, but as he passes, Bakugou opens his fist and flings some of the Nitroglycerin sweat from his palms. His leg was also twisting around to block Kyo from jumping back, as well as to the right. With no time to dodge, the highly flammable liquid hits the shinobi's face in time for a well-timed explosion to go off from Bakugou's hand, which extends and eventually ignites Kyo's face as well. Not waiting for him to recover, Bakugou uses another explosion to charge into him, colliding his fist into Kyo's face hard, which sends him flying.

 A cheer erupts from the sidelines as Bakugou finally gets a solid hit in. He was too focused on his fight to notice they had been watching in concerned silence. The explosive student allows himself to enjoy the sight of Kyo rolling along the ground, as he tries to slow himself to a stop. Kyo eventually manages to recover and quickly settles back into a defensive crouch. His burned cheek, still steaming from Bakugou's attack.

 Crimson eyes bore into each other for a few seconds before Kyo straightens up. A determined smile on his face. "Wow, I can't believe you actually got a hit in. Aizawa-sensei was right. You guys are tough," he laughs, making a show of dusting off his clothes. His laid-back attitude was putting Bakugou on edge. Kyo reaches a hand to his burn, wincing slightly at the light touch. His eyes suddenly harden. "Unfortunately, for you, that just means it's my turn to attack. And Bakugou?"

 Bakugou's ears prick at the mention of his name. "Thank you for hitting me," The shinobi thanks with a mischievous grin. He slowly brings a hand up close to his face. "I can't use my quirk otherwise." And with that, he snaps his fingers.

 Bakugou flinches. First, from being reminded of Compress's quirk. Half expecting to be shoved in that airless sphere again and then from the flaring pain in his hand. He curses under his breath, thankful that the pain distracted him from the traumatic memories of his kidnapping. The resulting adrenaline was grounding him to the present. He looks down at his right hand to see it smoking. For a split second, he thought he activated his quirk accidentally out of fear. However, he realized that the burns weren't on his palms but on the outside of his hand instead. Exactly where he punched Kyo before. His eyes were widening at the realization.

**_ …. _ **

**_ "Though that all depends if you can even lay a finger on me." _ **

**_ …. _ **

**_ "...you're gonna have to try harder if you actually wanna touch me." _ **

**_ …. _ **

**_ "Thank you for hitting me…. I can't use my quirk otherwise." _ **

**_ …. _ **

 Bakugou let out an aggravated growl.   _ ‘How could I be so stupid!'   _ He had been so proud of himself for not falling for Kyo's taunts but turned out he was being led around by the nose the whole time. Kyo had revealed all the information he needed about his quirk from the very start. Leave it for a shinobi to speak in code. Bakugou was suddenly painfully aware of all the slide marks and rubble on the ground. He was so fucked.

 "I see you figured it out," Kyo noticed, picking a piece of rubble off the ground. Casually tossing it up and down. To the rest of the class, he explains, "My Quirk is called Detonate. It allows me to turn everything I touch into a tickin' time bomb. One I can trigger remotely." With another snap of his fingers, the piece of rubble explodes into dust. Blowing away ominously in the breeze.

 "Now it's my turn to attack."

 

 Bakugou was up shit creek. Forced on the defensive as he dodges explosion after explosion on the ground. Using his quirk to keep his contact with the sand to a bare minimum. Kyo's footsteps having turned the very landscape into a fucking minefield with all his jumping and sliding around earlier. Not only that, but all the rubble that Kyo used to block his attacks earlier could be detonated at any second with just a simple snap of his fingers. Man, how he wished he could break those fingers, but he was having trouble enough just dodging these explosions, let alone actually getting close enough to deliver a blow to the shinobi. Even if he does touch him, he'd be blowing himself up in the process.

 An explosion detonates in front of him, singing his hair and covering his right side in soot. Annoyed, the original explosive teen blasts himself into the sky. Needing a few seconds to gather his thoughts. He passively wondered if this is how his classmates felt when fighting him.

 From above, he could see all the damage they had done to this space. It was going to take the school a long time to clean this up, for it was an absolute wreck. Massive craters were littered everywhere from Kyo's explosions, while the rubble from Bakugou's attacks would take weeks to pick up.

 His opponent made no attempt to follow him into the sky. Probably not as comfortable maneuvering in the air as him. Surprising since his brother has a flying quirk. Instead, he paced around the battlefield. Replenishing the bombs he had already used while waiting for Bakugou to land again.   _ ‘Great.' _

Bakugou never imagined that he'd fight someone with a similar quirk as him. Now he knew how Kirishima felt when he met that guy from class B. But because their quirks were so similar, that would also mean they shared similar weaknesses. His explosions must also place a physical strain on his body. With the larger explosions sapping his stamina faster.

 Kyo already appeared to be getting tired. His speed was steadily getting slower as the fight dragged on. His muscles, especially in the shoulders, becoming more tense and rigid. Unlike Bakugou's quirk, Kyo was triggered remotely.   _ ‘He couldn't possibly be feeling the effects of recoil, could he? Maybe he injured himself during his roll earlier?'  _  He pushes the thoughts away. The reason didn't matter much. Only the fact that it slowed him down considerably. His own arms ached with the extended use of his quirk.   _ ‘I better wrap this up.'  _  Bakugou thinks, twirling in mid-air to dive-bomb Kyo. He wished he could use his Howitzer Impact, but he would've killed his whole class at this proximity. So this will have to do.

 After revealing his quirk, Kyo doesn't seem to concerned with dodging anymore. Choosing instead to block with his body, furthering his advantage over his opponent. Bakugou could use this to his advantage. Kyo reaches up to grab at the blonde, but a quick blast to change directions is enough to keep from getting caught in his grasp.

 Instead, the ash-blonde grabs hold of Kyo's outstretched arm and throws him with the extra force of an explosion. Slamming the shinobi hard onto the ground, but not before both of Bakugou's hands detonate from the contact. Pain immediately flaring, but it's ignored. Thankfully his thick skin helps protect him from burns, especially his palms, so Kyo's quirk wasn't as effective as it could be. It was a reckless attack. He knew that. But as the fight progressed, it became painfully clear that the only way to defeat Kyo was to get in close. Hopefully, putting him down before his quirk burned Bakugou to hell. Just like his fight against All Might, this wasn't an opponent he could afford to fight without being willing to take risks.

 "You think fighting someone with a similar quirk as me is my worst-case scenario? I hate to break it to you, but I've already lived through my mine! Try harder!" Bakugou challenges, flexing his hands in anticipation of the shinobi's next move.

 The orange-haired teen recovered quickly, but he's breathing hard. Obviously exhausted, but his eyes continue to shine brightly. The chaotic grin never leaving his face. Only growing as time passed. It was only then that Bakugou realized he was grinning too. It's been way too long since he's blown off so much steam. To be able to fight so freely without having to worry about getting killed.

 Both explosive teens charge each other. Explosions from both sides, shredding their clothes in their frenzy to get the upper hand on their opponent. Their movements were quickly blurring together as they continue to evade each other's attacks until their class has trouble telling one from the other. Crimson eyes locked together, neither willing to give up until a winner is decided. Their intensity was apparently freaking their class out. Some of them voicing their concerns.

 "They're going to destroy the whole school at this rate."

 "Are we really going to be stuck with these two monsters all semester?!"

 "We're all going to get murdered!"

 "We better not get stuck cleaning this mess up."

 In their frenzy, Bakugou hears Aizawa-sensei telling them to stop. He can already feel the effects of his quirk being dampened by the Eraser Hero. The blast he was aiming at Kyo's chest only half the size he had intended it to be. The blonde grits his teeth angrily. He didn't want to stop. He couldn't. Bakugou wouldn't let his teacher steal this victory from him. He was only a few moves away from ending this.

 Kyo must have felt the same. Before the blonde could do something stupid, like attack his teacher in his crazed state, the shinobi pulled something reflective from his pocket. Pointing it towards their teacher, effectively blinding him for a few seconds. A chorus of shocked gasps sounding behind them. Feeling his quirk flare back to life, Bakugou aims a powerful explosion at the ground under the shinobi's feet. Forcing him to jump upwards to avoid being pelted with debris.

 "Your mine." Bakugou laughs, blasting into the air, grabbing the front of Kyo's shirt as he passes. Unable to dodge Bakugou while in the air, they both shoot up into the sky. Kyo was trying to break the blonde's hold on him. Detonating the crap out of his wrists and dealing heavy blows to his body, but the blonde's hands maintain their death grip on Kyo. A satisfied smirk on his face.

 Once their high enough up that Aizawa can't cancel their quirks without risking their lives, Bakugou lifts his hand toward the sky as he had done in his fight with Deku. "Game over," he exclaims, before rocketing them back to earth.

 "Not yet!" Kyo promises. Using one of his free hands to trace his side. At the last second, he manages to twist them around by detonating part of his own body. Throwing off their trajectory enough so they both land painfully on their sides. The force was knocking them away from each other, and the resulting dust cloud was hiding them from the class's view.

 A hasty scuffle could be heard within the smoke, before falling silent. Everyone watches the smoke cloud slowly disperse in stunned silence. No one dared to move. When the smoke finally clears, it reveals a frustrated looking Bakugou with both of Kyo's hands poised to snap his fingers on either side of his head; meanwhile, Bakugou's own sparkling hands are hovering just above Kyo's heart and throat. It's a stalemate. And they both look absolutely pissed about it.

 "No fair. I should've had you!" Kyo pouts, lowering his hands first. His right side smoking from where he detonated himself. The exposed skin was already reddening angrily.

 "Yeah, right. I would have found a way out and kicked your ass," Bakugou retorts, rolling his eyes. But he's smiling. At least as much as Bakugou is capable of smiling.

 Something hard and durable wraps around both of them, pulling them roughly to the ground. They exchange dazed with each other before staring up at a furious looking Aizawa. His black hair standing on end and his eyes flashed red with the activation of his quirk and possibly murderous intent as well.

  "I'm glad you two are starting to get along," the underground hero growled, tightening his hold on them. Irritating the multiple burns they both had along their bodies. "Because you'll be seeing a lot of each other in detention for the next month."

  "Fuck."

**__ **

**_ Tohru P. O. V. _ **

 The rest of Class-A watched as their homeroom teacher dragged both explosive teens off to detention. Aizawa not even bothering to release them from his beloved capture weapon. The class was instructed to partner up and spar for the remainder of the period. Tohru's worried gaze watched them until they disappeared from view. She lets out a defeated sigh. She had a feeling Kyo was planning a stunt like this, though she had hoped he was going to restrain himself at least a little bit.   _ ‘Oh well.' _

  A few feet away, she spots her other comrade with a small group of students. Tsubasa currently chatting with a sweet-looking boy with green hair and freckles. He seemed to be asking questions at the speed of light while jotting notes just as quick in a scorched looking notebook.

  "Your Tengu Quirk, is that a mutation coupled with some sort of Air Manipulation?"

  "Sort of, it's more of a--"

  "If that's the case, why does your brother's have a detonation quirk?"

  "That's because he--"

 "Do you come from a family of Shinobi?"

 "Yes we do--"

 "What's your top speed?"

 "I'm not exactly--''

 Her teammate tried to answer all of his questions as best he could, but another question would be asked before he finished giving an answer to the previous one. She suppressed the urge to giggle, knowing Tsubasa can get the same way when he finds something he's interested in.

 "Midoriya, it's not polite to bombard our guests with so many questions at once. Please limit yourself to three at this time," a tall boy with glasses and bright purple hair cuts in. His arms making weird cutting motions in the air. He seemed to be trying to calm the other boy, but it was clear that he was too far gone to be helped.

 On his other side was a tall girl with beautiful black hair pulled into a ponytail. Her onyx eyes studied Tsubasa's wings with curious fascination. She looked like she wanted to touch them, but waited patiently for permission. Though with the rate the freckled boy was rattling off questions, she would probably be waiting for a very long time.

 The last person in their group was a boy with half white, half red hair. He didn't appear to be that interested in what they were talking about. Just content to stand there with his friends. Every now and then he would give a gentle reminder to his classmate, telling him he had to take a breath before he passed out.

 "What do you think you're doing?" a voice asks cooly behind her. Startled, she whips around to offer her sincerest apologies for whatever she was doing wrong. Her eyes focusing on a boy with bright spiky red hair. He was frowning, something that just seemed to look so wrong on his soft face. He had a subtle scar above one of his eyes, which, to her confusion, were not looking at her. Following his gaze down, she sees what she assumed was a child with weird spherical purple hair.

 The boy seems panicked about getting caught. Though Tohru didn't understand why. He didn't appear to be doing any harm. He was standing unusually close to her with some weird rectangular device held out in front of him, pointing in her direction. On closer inspection, she realized it was a phone, similar to the one Aizawa sensei provided the trio upon arriving in this world. She had never seen a phone quite like it before. She was excited to learn they had a camera feature…. Realization suddenly hit her. Her face turned bright red in embarrassment.

 "Mineta, you didn't," another voice chimed in. The familiar pink form of Mina coming to stand in front of the kunoichi. Shielding her from the pervert.

 "C'mon man. I can appreciate a hotty when I see one, but taking photos like that is not very cool," a boy with golden hair adds, resting an arm on the pinkette.

 The redhead holds his hand out to his classmates. "Hand it over," he urges, motioning for the phone. He was met with little resistance, the phone is eventually placed in his hand. "Now, you can have this back when you made it up to Honda-san. Understand?" There's a weak nod from the class pervert, who then sulks off somewhere else. The response satisfies the redhead, so he nods back in agreement while pocketing the phone.

  "I'm very sorry that you had to deal with that. Mineta can be… well, there's really no excuse for his behavior," he began while applying a large amount of hand sanitizer to his hands. Courtesy of a tall boy with black hair. "My name is Kirishima. Would you like to spar with me Honda-san?" he asks, his face bright like the sun.

 Tohru couldn't help but brighten up in response. "I would love too!~" she beamed. "And you don't have to be so formal. Tohru is just fine with me~."

 "Alright, Tohru!" He smiles even brighter if that's even possible. Offering his hand to lead her a little way off, so no one gets caught up in their fight. A few girls cry out in disappointment as Tohru is whisked away from them. They had hoped to be turned back into the cat forms they were in earlier. Tohru waves at them as she passes. Promising to hang out with them later.

  "We'll do a simple sparring match," Kirishima began. "We'll be using our quirks. The first person to pin the other or get their opponent to forfeit wins. Does that sound good to you, Tohru?"

Tohru nods her head.

  "Mina, will you call the start of the match for us?"

  "Sure thing Kiri!" Mina calls from a safe distance away. Kaminari and Sero standing next to her. "Get ready, get set, GO!"

 Kirishima immediately activates his quirk, waiting for Tohru's attack. She's taken off guard for a second, seeing his quirk in person. She knew he had a hardening quirk thanks to the info Aizawa provided them, but reading about a quirk and seeing it in person were two different things. She didn't expect Kirishima's quirk to be so fascinating to look at. She wondered how it worked.

 Distracted by her thoughts, she doesn't remember she's in a sparring much until Kiri appears right in front of her with a hardened fist pulled back. Surprised, she just manages to dodge the attack. The brunette attempts to counter with medical ninjutsu when Tohru remembers she's only allowed to use her transformation powers in front of others while they're in this world. Tohru's suddenly hyper-aware of the 20 pairs of curious eyes on her as she spars with Kirishima. Probably expecting another great spectacle like Kyo performed with one of their most powerful classmates. That's just too much pressure for Tohru to deal with. ‘  _ What do I do? What do I turn him into?' What would Kyo do?'  _  She panics.

 Tohru claps her hands together in an attempt to focus her powers.   _ ‘Alright, turn him into a bunny. Bunnies are easily scared, so he'll flee the second I make a move towards him. In my cat form, I will be able to capture him easily.'  _  That was the plan anyway. She looks back at Kirishima again, her powers already being directed at him with the image in her mind. When she notices for the first time that the cute little horns he has on top of his head look an awful lot like cat ears.

  A pair of red cat ears pop on top of Kirishima's head along with a long fluffy tail. The girls in the class shriek in a mixture of excitement and jealousy as Kirishima is turned into the most precious thing ever. The redhead, on the other hand, is staring at his hands, noticing that his hardening quirk has seemingly been lessened from Tohru's power. Only his nails seem to be elongated and sharp, though he has no idea if that is from his quirk or hers. He takes the change in stride. Having promised himself to never back down from a challenge ever again.

 However, Tohru is flustered by her mistake.   _ ‘I lost focus again,'  _  she berates herself. With an ability as powerful as hers, along with one that relies on her thoughts. It is extremely dangerous to get distracted when fighting, or ever, for that matter. She pushes the thought to the back of her mind. Wandering down that dark rabbit hole is something she should never venture in for too long. Tohru claps her hands together to calm herself and change him back, but her powers pick up on the chaotic state of her mind and doesn't activate. She sighed to herself. She figured that would happen.

 Kirishima closes the distance with his renewed agility. Aiming a subdued swipe at her arm. She sidesteps him easily. Her movements are even more graceful than Kyo's in his fight with Bakugou. She smiles to herself. Kyo is definitely the strongest fighter out of the three, but Tohru is the fastest. Her specialty involving evasion since she dislikes hurting people when she can help it. The twins always told her that she moved with a grace that they could never hope to copy, though that only applies when she's performing. The rest of the time… her mind recalls her tripping during her intro to the class. Her cheeks burn in embarrassment at the memory.

 Something dragging her backward interrupts her ever scattered thoughts. Her eyes dart behind her to see a clawed hand clutching the back of her shirt, pulling her down towards the ground. She hastily unzips her jacket to free herself from Kirishima's hold. Jumping back a safe distance as he struggles to untangle his claws from the fabric. When he managed that, he charges her with a determined grin on his face.

 Tohru drops into a crouch. Her hands scooping up as much sand as possible. She flings it out in front of her and then claps her hands. In her mind, she imagines the chemical makeup of the sand changing to stone. Sure enough, the sand congeals together, morphing into multiple rocks, which Kirishima crashes into before they have a chance to hit the ground. A surprised hiss escaping his lips as he rubs comically where one hit him square in the forehead. His cat ears lying flat against his head and his tail swaying sadly behind him. "Sorry !~." Tohru couldn't help but apologize, which earns her a few giggles from the sidelines.

 The redhead laughs as well. "No worries! We're sparring after all."

 "Right~" Tohru agrees, trying to focus.

 

 They continued sparring for another 10 minutes before Kirishima manages to pin her--gently Tohru notices--to the ground. He did an incredible job using his new form against her. He must have a lot of knowledge of cats because he utilized all their strengths perfectly. Tohru, on the other hand, was too flustered to recover. It was more difficult than she imagined to only use her transformation powers than she first believed. Especially by herself instead of offering support to her friends. Never liking to use her abilities to cause harm, she's mainly relied on supporting her allies and using her abilities to subdue or handicap opponents. It wasn't until Kyo offered that she shouldn't think of fighting as inflicting harm, but to think of it as protecting herself and those important to her that she was finally able to use them against others. However, attacking head-on by herself was still something new for her. It looks like she'll have to practice more.

 Kirishima lets go of his hold on her and offer her a hand up. "Wow, Tohru, you were amazing!" The redhead says with a huge grin. The cat ears on top of his head, making him look even cuter than usual.

 "Thanks!~" Tohru replies back happily. Taking the hand offered thankfully.

 "Can I ask you something?" He asks, helping her to her feet.

 "Of course!~"

 He scratches the back of his head, awkwardly. "Well, I was wondering why you didn't turn yourself into an animal form?"

 Tohru blinked at him a few times. Her sapphire eyes look up as her hands feel the top of her head. Her face turned as red as Kirishima's hair when she realizes she never used an animal form on herself. "Umm…. I got flustered when I turned you into a form I didn't mean to, and well, I guess I forgot to transform myself," she mumbled, her hands covering her face from view. She felt like she was never going to live down the embarrassment she was currently feeling. She was so thankful that Kyo ended up getting detention.

 The redhead's cheeks turn pink in embarrassment as well. "I'm sorry, Tohru. I didn't mean to upset you. I was just curious!" He stampers quickly. Kirishima gently removes her hands from her face and hold them in his. "It's alright, Tohru. Everyone gets flustered ever now and then. And it is easy to forget things when we are. We're all still working on controlling our powers. So there's nothing to worry about. No one's going to think any less of you. Alright?"

 Tohru can sense the sincerity of Kirishima's words. She looks around at the group around them. She sees nothing but a sea of smiling faces looking back at her, some of which are nodding in agreement to Kirishima's words. Tohru smiles as well. She's only ever felt this accepted by her comrades, but maybe she can find companionship in this group of students as well. "Yeah, let's do our best together~."

 The redhead offered her some advice as they watched the other students break off to spar. He suggests that instead of focusing on using her powers on her opponents, she should focus on transforming herself. This way, her opponents can't use the animal's traits against her as he did in their fight. Kirishima also believes that maybe this will give her a confidence boost in her own powers instead of offering support to others. This takes Tohru by surprise. She doesn't recall telling him that she's self-conscious about her abilities because she usually provides support to the twins. Lucky guess?

 They were interrupted by Aizawa's sudden return. The exhausted teacher dismissed the rest of the class early. A reward for them not killing each other while he was gone. While the rest of the class begins to leave, Aizawa reminds them that Mina, Kaminari, and Sero have detention for the prank they did to the class president. Turns out, his natural hair color wasn't purple, after all. The class sends them their condolences as the trio file obediently behind the raven-haired hero as he leads them back towards the school.

**_ Kyo P. O. V. _ **

 It was a longer walk back to the classroom than Kyo would have liked. The burns on his side flaring painfully with each step. The remains of his shirt and the bandages on his chest rubbing against the injuries and his other still healing wounds uncomfortably. It took all of his will power not to wince at the discomfort. He can feel eyes on him, though he resists the urge to look around. Kyo's used to eyes on him, with his incredibly bright orange hair and intimidating red eyes. For a shinobi, he sticks out like a sore thumb. Kyo grits his teeth. He doesn't need to justify himself to anyone.

 When they arrive at the classroom, Aizawa ushers them in, before slamming the massive door behind them. The air gets cold, with an incredible amount of malice. A more tremendous aura than Kyo thought the underground hero was capable of. He was actually impressed. 

 Though he maintained his casual demeanor.

 Aizawa glared daggers at him as he towered over him. Kyo resists the instinct to growl at the person invading his personal space, though he allows his crimson eyes to narrow into a death glare at the raven-haired hero. The hero doesn't look that impressed by his self-control, which ticks Kyo off even further. He can feel the temperature begin to rise, so he forces himself to calm down. Breaking eye contact before he blows them all sky high on accident. Aizawa seems pleased by this response. He holds his hand out to him. "Hand it over."

 Kyo tsks, before fishing out a kunai from his pocket. It was what he used to blind Aizawa with during their fight.   _ ‘I guess I shouldn't have done that,'  _  Kyo musses to himself. He reluctantly hands it over to his new sensei, though he gives it a twirl before dropping it into his hand. Aizawa regards it for a few seconds before letting out a long sigh. "Empty your pockets."

  "Why?" Kyo muttered, crossing his arms impatiently.

  "You expect me to believe this is all of it?"

 Kyo really wanted to protest, but the look Aizawa shot him told him that he was absolutely done with his hijinks today. Not wanting to get expelled on the first day, he gritted his teeth and stuffed his hands into his pockets. Pulling out an assortment of kunais and shuriken. He even removed the weapons case hidden on his belt. Ignoring the weird look, Bakugou shot him as he removed an ungodly amount of weapons from his person. "There you happy?"

 "Rarely. Is this everything?" Aizawa asked in a bored tone.

 "What, do you want me to strip down to my underwear?!" Kyo growled angrily. He was losing his patience.

 Aizawa rolled his eyes. "I told you yesterday that weapons are prohibited on school grounds. You will only be allowed to use them in class, or have you forgotten that?" The underground hero looked like he was ready to strangle him at this point.

 Kyo crossed his arms angrily. "Yeah yeah, whatever."

 "I mean it. I will search you every day if I must. Are we clear?"

 "Crystal."

 "Good. Now both of you take a seat," Aizawa orders with a sigh. The two oblige without question. Bakugou takes his usual seat while Kyo sits down at Kaminari's desk a few seats over. "You're both to sit in silence and reflect on why you're here until Lunch. Please refrain from killing each other or blowing anything up," he says with a wave as he leaves the room. His sleeping bag under his arm as he heads toward the teacher's lounge for a well-deserved nap.

 As soon as he leaves, Bakugou shifts in his seat to place both legs up on his desk. Slouching his body in his chair in a more comfortable position. Kyo smirks at that. It seems he's not the only one that enjoys breaking the rules. He places his own legs up on his borrowed desk. He reaches a hand into one of his combat boots and pulls a hidden Kunai out from it. He then proceeds to casually throw it up into the air and catch it as one would do with a ball. Throwing the kunai was more to help distract himself from his injuries and fatigue more than anything else. He was still exhausted after traveling to this world, and his intense fight with Bakugou did not help. Eventually, the familiar motion allowed him to lose himself comfortably in his thoughts. Aizawa had no idea what he unleashed when he told him he couldn't bring weapons to school.

**__ **

**_ Flashback: _ **

 

 Kyo lets out a huge yawn as he stretches. Aizawa had been scolding that purple-haired eavesdropper for over an hour now. Exhausted from traveling and losing interest after Aizawa said the kid wasn't a threat, just stupid, Kyo had decided to regain some of his strength with a much-needed catnap.

 Apparently, Aizawa had a habit of adopting strays. He had taken in the insomniac teen a few months before, after taking an interest in his performance at the UA Sports Festival. The teen had no family to speak of and could benefit from a positive guardian figure in his life. So Aizawa did the unthinkable. He opened his life to the troubled teen, in the process, doing whatever he could to get him into the Hero Course. That was supposed to be the end of it, but a couple weeks ago, he took in yet another kid. A little girl, this time by the name of Eri. It was supposed to be a temporary thing, but the little girl managed to worm her way into what was left of Aizawa's heart. Thus completing the ragtag new family. It was because of this worried new addition that brought Shinsou here in the first place. The little girl was concerned when Aizawa was late coming back home. Completely distraught that a villain had gotten him. Shinsou being the wonderful big brother he was, came to investigate after leaving Eri with some guy named Mirio.

 After Aizawa finished chewing him out for disobeying orders and following him here to eavesdrop on him. Shinsou turned around to scold Aizawa for worrying the poor traumatized girl by not even giving them a phone call to say he was going to be late. The look on the underground hero's face was priceless, as he struggled with wanting to smack Shinsou and also feeling guilty for worrying Eri. He did end up smaking the teen with a stack of graded papers. So that's how Shinsou ended up getting drafted into their scheme to protect class A.

 "Looks like you get to be in the hero course after all," Aizawa said unenthusiastically.

 Shinsou's excited face quickly morphed into something bittersweet. "I kinda hoped that I wouldn't be risking my life the second I signed up, though."

 "Well, next time don't eavesdrop on other people's conversations," Aizawa said with a shrug. "Besides, risking your life is what it means to be a hero," He explained, putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder before making his way to leave. "We better go get Eri and call it a day."

 The underground reaches for the door but stops with his hand on the doorknob. He turns back to the shinobi. His onyx eyes focused on Kyo. "I realize that you're all used to doing things your own way, but please refrain from using weapons outside of class. UA has a very strict ‘No Weapons' Policy. They are only to be used during specific classes under the direct supervision of teachers. Even off of school grounds, this country frowns on the use of weapons. They are seen as a Villains tool."

 "You've gotta be kidding!" Kyo exclaimed, thoroughly offended. He takes great pride in his weaponry skills. They are a massive part of his fighting style. He spends countless hours caring for them and even makes his own as well as all the weapons his teammates use. They are apart of him. So much so that his soul's physical form is a Kunai for crying out loud. He's just expected to leave a part of himself every single day? Kyo's crimson eyes begin to flicker as they narrow in agitation at the hero before him. "No fuckin' way."

 Aizawa is not phased. He walks back over to the shinobi. He only stopped when he was towering over Kyo with his hair standing up, his own red eyes glowing menacingly. The Hero's quirk having a weird effect on his body. Not only stifling his powers but also flaring up his emotions. "Kyo. You are forbidden to bring weapons to school. Do you understand?"

 Kyo tsked, but mumbled a "Yes Sir," under his breath. Though when Aizawa looked away, Kyo smirked wickedly.   _ ‘Yeah, right. Challenge accepted you, shinobi wannabe."   _ He had no intention of following that rule. The movement of Tsubasa crossing his arms with a disapproving look on his face caught his attention. Kyo just rolled his eyes at his goody-two-shoes of a brother. He must have known that Kyo would never agree to such a rule. And without shedding blood, he's not obligated to either. Kyo had his own will after all.

 Kyo was annoyed with all the secrecy, though. The shinobi understands why they can't just tell the class that they're in danger of dying horribly in a burning inferno, but it sure would be nice to not have to put up this exchange student charade for a whole semester. The number of lies they'll tell by the end of this mission was going to be annoying as hell to keep straight between the five of them now? Or was it six? Kyo sighs in exasperation. Gods, he hates lying. But his brother tends to be right about these sorts of things, so he'll follow his lead. For now, at least.

**_ End of Flashback _ **

 The shinobi risks a glance at the other teen. The explosive teen's attention currently focused on the kunai being tossed casually in his hand. Kyo sighs. He really wanted to be friends with the blonde, but he sees it's not going to be that easy. It seems Aizawa wasn't just a stick in the mud about him bringing his arsenal to school. Weapons do have a negative connotation in this world, after all. ‘  _ They're not heroic or some shit. Yeah, fuckin right, they're not.'  _  He tosses the kunai even higher. The tip just barely missing the ceiling before it flips over on itself and plummets back to earth. Kyo is a weapon master. His tools don't do anything he doesn't want them too. They have definitely saved more lives than they've taken.

_ ‘The world is divided between heroes and villains, huh? And if you're neither your nothing,'  _  the orange-haired reminds himself glumly. No shades of grey. Hardly any room for debate. He's used to being ostracized by the locals since they tend to attract trouble wherever they go but appears that they're already being classified as something evil for who they are as people--or as Bakugou put it earlier, for being some sort of mindless soldiers. ‘  _ Way to go, Aizawa.'   _ Kyo thinks since it was his idea for them to use something familiar as their backstory.

 Kyo chokes down the lump in his throat. He really should be used to it by now considering their bloodline. Even Tohru, who is 100% human, has been looked down on and hunted since birth. They're not supposed to fit in. They're not meant to plant roots. That's the whole point of their wandering curse. Why should this world be any different? Still….he had hoped it would be.

 As Kyo continued to play with his kunai, he could feel Bakugou staring at him. He tries to ignore it at first. Not really in the mood to talk with how dark and self-deprecating his thoughts were turning. But as the minutes dragged on, it was becoming increasingly clear that he wasn't going to get any peace until they addressed the elephant in the room.

 "Do you have a problem with me?" Kyo asks tactlessly, not bothering to stop what he was doing.

**_ Bakugou P. O. V. _ **

 

 The original explosive teen couldn't help but stare at the kunai as it continued to be tossed up and down so casually. When they were fighting, Bakugou had mostly forgotten that Kyo was a shinobi. He seemed like the rest of his classmates, with his own personality and ideals. Kyo seemed too lively and mischievous to be a mindless living weapon that he had read about in history books. Though seeing him with an assortment of weapons, tools he uses with deadly precision, Bakugou was reminded that Kyo has a different purpose than the one he strives to achieve. 

 Kyo is a shinobi. A person trained to kill without a second thought. A human weapon that must be prepared to kill despite that person's relationship with the target. Whether that was a child, a friend, a significant other, or a family member. While Bakugou jokes about killing when he's angered and has no qualms about killing villains who had already hurt countless people; at his core, Bakugou is a hero. A person meant to save people, to protect those from people who wished to do others harm. Someone who should never be associated with those with little regard for human life.

 Heroes maintained their individuality, their ideals, and their free will. They cared for their comrades and the wellbeing of everyone around them. Bakugou and Kyo should only ever be facing against each other. It was unnatural for them to be on the same side. Heroes save. Shinobi kill. Simple as that. Only…. it wasn't that simple. 

 Bakugou thinks back to how Kyo and his brother stood up for their teammate when she tripped during her introduction. They looked ready to take on anyone that even thought of laughing at her. That type of protective behavior just doesn't fit with the shinobi mold, where only the strongest survive. Instead of standing up for her, they should have shunned her. Bakugou only just met Kyo, but he just doesn't seem like the type of person who would kill his teammates if ordered to. 

 Bakugou's crimson eyes narrowed in frustration. ‘  _ Why the hell would Aizawa-sensei think it was a good idea to bring them here?'  _  he thought angrily as he tried to solve this riddle. But there were just too many contradictions in logic to come to any sort of conclusion. He just couldn't figure out what he was supposed to make of them. Or how he should feel about their unnatural presence in a hero school.

 "Do you have a problem with me?" Kyo asks out of the blue. He didn't bother to stop tossing the kunai, though he did turn towards Bakugou. His crimson eyes looked tired.

 This question caught Bakugou off guard. He did, in fact, have a problem with him. But he didn't really want to address it. He also couldn't just blow up and deny it, because doing so would just announce that he did have a problem with him. Before he gets the chance to respond, Kyo pack pedals and rephrases the question.

 "Sorry, I'm still a little jet-lagged. What I meant to ask you was, if what I'm doing now is bothering you?" Kyo asks, waving the weapon in his hand. No longer tossing it.

 Bakugou did not entirely buy that, but he went with it. "You mean breaking the no weapons on campus rule?"

 Kyo shrugged. "Well that and me tossing it to make detention go by faster. You looked a little uncomfortable about it."

 Bakugou tsked at that. "Like I care what you do. If you want to get in even more trouble, that's up to you."

 Crimson eyes studied his face for a moment. Bakugou was used to Kirishima's scarlet eyes staring back at him, but Kyo's eyes were crimson just like his. ' _ Just like blood.'   _ It was unsettling. Thankfully Kyo broke eye contact first. He took the Kunai in his hand and suddenly stabs it into the desk. The movement makes Bakugou jump despite himself. Bakugou narrows his eyes at the shinobi. Silently cursing him for pulling that shit.

 "So it does bother you. Why's that?"

 Angry Bakugou responds, "First of all, it's you that's bothering me. But also, I want to be a hero, and heroes have no use for weapons." He slams his fists onto his desk, his hands smoking slightly. Trying his best not to blow anything up as Aizawa had asked. He'd already exceeded his monthly desk limit. 

 The shinobi turns in his seat entirely until he's facing his classmate. "Really? Heroes never use weapons? At all?"

 Bakugou reigns in his anger. Of course, that's not true. Aizawa never goes anywhere without his capture weapon. Then there's all the support gear they use, which most can be classified as weapons. His own gauntlets do more damage than the supposed weapon in Kyo's hand. "We use support items, though we mainly rely on our quirks to defeat villains."

 "So you're bothered by the fact that this," he yanks the kunai from the desk, "is used to kill while your support items just help utilize your quirk?" Kyo summarizes. His voice is lower than it was before, more controlled and leveled. Kyo seemed annoyed. He rolls his shoulder subtly, and Bakugou doesn't miss the way his eyes twitch in response. "Well, I hate to burst your bubble, but your reasoning is flawed."

 "Say what?"

 "You heard me. You're wrong about this solely being a weapon." He twirls the kunai in his hands. The movement was so fluid and natural that it puts Bakugou on edge. It wouldn't take much for Kyo to whirl it around and fling it at him. The shinobi must have sensed this because he stopped twirling it. Instead, he held the handle out to him for him to take. Bakugou hesitated before he carefully took it from him.

 The kunai was more substantial than he expected. The dark metal cool to the touch, and the wraps on the handle smoothed down from extended use. It was pretty despite its deadly capabilities. There were hardly and scratches, obviously well taken care of.

 "You seem to know a lot about shinobi. Then you must know that a lot of our weapons were originally farming equipment that was then modified to meet our needs. Most of which are designed to be replaced easily and readily with objects lying around," Kyo explained with a smug grin on his face. Knowing full well that he was poking holes in Bakugou's reasoning. "That kunai in your hands is an essential tool for us, though it's mostly used as climbing equipment more than anything else. It has an infinite number of tasks it can perform. ‘Weapon' is merely one of its functions. I'm willing to bet it has more uses than any of your support gear."

 Before Bakugou could protest, Kyo continued. "A weapon's sole purpose isn't just for killing. They are tools to be used as their master's wishes."

 The ash-blonde scoffs at that. "That's rich coming from you. Aren't Shinobi just human weapons to be utilized as their master's wishes?" Kyo doesn't dispute this. He looks like he wanted to deny this claim, but holds his tongue. His eyes narrowing dangerously.   _ ‘So he does just follow orders, huh?'  _  This aggravates Bakugou more than anything. He hates it when people won't speak their mind. It annoys him when people needlessly restrain themselves. With his anger clouding his judgment, he continues to push Kyo's buttons. Hoping to get a rise out of him.

 "So who's your master Carrot top? Or are you just on loan to the school for the moment?" A low growl escapes Kyo's mouth as he stands from his seat. His knuckles are white as they clutch the desk. The desk creaking in protest as a result.

 Bakugou stands up as well. No way was he going to allow this punk to tower over him. "And here I thought you might be someone I could get along with, but no way am I going to even associate with someone who can't think for themselves. I refuse to be forced to wonder if the person next to me might stab me in the back if ordered to." Bakugou's words were like a punch in the gut for Kyo. Even Bakugou could see that in the way he physically reacted after the words left his mouth.

 "I don't understand how someone like you allows themselves to be used? If ordered to, would you really kill your teammates?"

 "Shut your mouth," Kyo growled under his breath. His orange hair hiding his eyes from view. His body trembling in barely contained rage. "I'm warning you."

 But Bakugou wasn't finished. He needed answers, or he'll never be able to relax. He will not stand in the presence of someone capable of doing terrible things to his classmates like the awful things that had been done to him over and over. The ash-blonde gives the kunai in his hands a testing toss. Catching it clumsily when compared to Kyo earlier.  

"If someone handed this to you and ordered you to kill your brother right now. Would you be able to slit his throat without a second thought?"

 A loud crack echoed through the room from Kyo breaking the edges of Kaminari's desk off, from his death grip on it. The air around them suddenly hot and thick with energy. It's overwhelmingly suffocating, even by Bakugou's standards. His crimson eyes watch Kyo as he struggles to control himself from blowing up everything around them. Blood slowly drips from the side of his mouth from him, biting his lip in a desperate attempt to control his anger.

 "I don't care what you or anyone else thinks of me, but you best believe that I will never hurt anyone important to me. Anyone dumb enough to even suggest something like that to me will be coughing up their own blood before they even finish their sentence," Kyo vows in an icy tone. His eyes finally looking up from where they were hidden behind his orange hair, revealing glowing red eyes that looked nothing less than demonic. "You got that, Baku-hoe?"

 The insult irks the ash-blonde. Bakugou attempts to take a step forward, but the menacing aura increases, forcing him to stay where he is. It's clear that the shinobi meant what he said, and Bakugou really didn't want to clean up the resulting mess if he pushed the other explosive teen too far. The orange-haired teen remains silent. His eyes daring Bakugou to say something else to piss him off. His fingers poised to blow them both to hell with a snap of his fingers.

 Bakugou takes a reluctant seat on top of his desk. Willing the majority of his anger to leave his body as he crosses his arms. "While I'm glad to hear you're not just some mindless lackey. You do realize what you just said is clear insubordination? You might want to keep such dangerous outbursts to a minimum," Bakugou states in a guarded tone. His voice lacking its usual bite. The shinobi's expression is unreadable, though he settles back into his seat as well. Bakugou rolls his eyes at how reluctantly he falls back into line.  

 "Are you a complete idiot? You can get yourself flogged for saying stuff like that, can't you? That's assuming they won't go straight for the more hardcore punishments like maiming or execution. Do you want to die?"

 "Of course not!" Kyo shouts back angrily. Realizing he's shouting, he takes a deep breath and lowers his tone."This is your fault anyway. If you didn't piss me off, maybe I wouldn't have incriminated myself."

 "Shut the fuck up!" Bakugou yelled back, hopping back to his feet. "It's not like I'm going to turn you in. I'm just warning you to keep your fucking mouth shut about stuff like that."

 Kyo regards him for a few seconds. Bakugou can see the gears turning in his head as he debates whether Bakugou is telling the truth or not. Of whether he’s going to trust him with that delicate information. Bakugou’s not a sellout. He wouldn't rat someone out, no matter who they were. Just another deadly secret for him to keep.  _ ‘Great.’ _

 After mulling it over, Kyo finally responds, "Well, I appreciate it." He stands up once more, walking over to Bakugou with an extended hand. "We good now?"

 Bakugou blinks dumbly at him for a few seconds before looking away. Confused and annoyed at Kyo's constantly changing moods. But he takes his hand, offering one reluctant shake in response. "Fucking whatever."

 The door to the room slams open then, and they had just enough time to get back in their seats before Aizawa strolls in with the gloomy-looking Kaminari, Mina, and Sero following right behind him. At least they weren't dragged here like they were.

 "Find a seat and sit in silence until Lunch."

 Everyone grumbles a very unenthusiastic "Yes sir," before he turns on his heel and leaves them behind. Kaminari tries to whisper something about the state of his desk in Kyo's ear, but the orange-haired teen just laughs it off. Refusing to say what happened to it. Immediately getting roped into the rest of the squad's conversation.

 Bakugou watches him intently as he jokes happily with his squad. Kyo was an enigma. Bakugou essentially pissed him off enough that he revealed information that could endanger his life if the wrong people overheard and then asked if they were on good terms. Then he mingles with his new classmates like they've been friends their whole lives. In no way should their exchange end this way, but here they are like everything was A-OK.

 Bakugou had to admit that he did feel better knowing Kyo wasn't some heartless killer like the other villains he encountered. Still, he would have to do some in-depth soul searching about what makes a villain before he's 100% comfortable with Kyo and his friends. Something tells him it was going to be a long semester.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally got this chapter done. Hopefully it won't take as long to post updates as this chapter took. I have most of the story already outlined. I'm really excited about it and hope you enjoy the ride.


	4. Welcome To Class 1A

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kirishima was currently enjoying a hot cup of Hot chocolate with Tohru, Uraraka, Midoriya, Tsubasa, Iida, and Shinsou at one of the tables in the lounge. All of them, content to chat happily with one another and get acquainted with the new students of their class.

 

 

**_Kirishima P. O. V._ **

 

The steady sound of rain pattered rhythmically against the dorm windows, as the well-behaved students of Class-A were enjoying an unexpected half-day comfortably within the warmth of the common room. Their afternoon classes had been canceled due to the chaos that ensued that morning. The troublemakers weren’t so lucky. Angry with them all, Aizawa had instructed them to clear out all the rubble that had been created during Bakugou and Kyo’s fight for the remainder of the day, despite the dreadful weather. Whatever they didn’t manage to dispose of would be saved for the next day and so forth until it was cleared up enough for Cementoss to level out the area. 

While Kaminari and Sero were stuck using wheelbarrows and shovels, Bakugou and Kyo decided to clear the area with their quirks. Subduing their destructive powers, so they didn’t accidentally create more work for them to do. After watching them for a bit, Mina decided to use her quirk as well. Her acid even better suited for the task than theirs. At the current pace, they should be done cleaning up the mess that day but would be completely drenched by the time they were done. 

Kirishima was currently enjoying a hot cup of Hot Chocolate with Tohru, Uraraka, Midoriya, Tsubasa, Iida, and Shinsou at one of the tables in the lounge. All of them, content to chat happily with one another and get acquainted with the new students of their class. There was a delicious smell in the air from Sato baking something in the kitchens. Thanks to him, the dorm has always been filled with an assortment of baked goods from the kind-hearted student. Kirishima couldn’t be happier with his classmates. His quiet personality in his younger years had made it hard for him to make friends, besides Mina, before attending UA. Kirishima was proud to say that there wasn’t a single student that he didn’t get along with now ...Well, except for Mineta. 

He and Tohru had become fast friends. Already seeing her as the sister, he never had. Mina doesn’t count because she has declared herself the   _“fun Aunt,”_ to everyone within the squad. Kirishima just couldn’t help gushing over how adorable Tohru was, especially when flustered by everyone’s attention. Uraraka sat on the kunoichi’s other side, she was also a big Tohru fan and was constantly asking her to use her quirk to turn her and people around the table into different animal forms. Tohru’s eyes were sparkling with renewed self-confidence with each successful transformation and the resulting fit of giggles and laughter from the table. At the moment, Uraraka had pointed dog ears, Midoriya had bunny ears, and Shinsou was a cat. Kirishima was still in his cat form from earlier, and Iida had respectfully declined altogether, still feeling self-conscious about his current appearance. Momo had made him some hair dye earlier, that should match his natural color, but didn’t have a chance to try it yet. 

“Do you know where you’re staying yet?” Kirishima asked the group. Taking this opportunity to add some more whipped cream to his drink.

“We’re not sure yet,” Tsubasa answered before taking another sip of his hot chocolate. He was sitting on a stool instead of a chair with a back, to better accommodate his broad wings. It seemed he preferred to have them out since he had yet to sheathe them since unveiling them that morning. Kirishima had to stop himself from staring on multiple occasions. He was relieved that the rest of the class was having just as much trouble as him. They were just so dazzling, especially in natural light. “Aizawa-sensei said he would have it figured out by the end of the day, but that was before…” He didn’t have to finish his sentence. Kirishima sighs. Bakugou sure knew how to rope everyone up with his impulses. 

“We’re probably going to move into some of the empty rooms in the dorms.” Shinsou theorized, downing his makeshift mocha. Maybe the reason he can’t ever sleep is that he drinks coffee in the afternoon. “I know Aizawa was already in the process of getting me moved into the dorms before these guys were hired.”

“Are there enough rooms for that?” Uraraka asks, her head cocked to one side in confusion. “There’s plenty of unoccupied rooms on the girls' side of the dorms, but aren’t there only a few open on the guys' side?” 

“Maybe Kaminari’s fear of some students being shifted out is true?” Iida suggested, his hands chopping the air in front of him. “Though Aizawa-sensei has been known to use irresponsible ruses before. I never thought he would actually expel some of us someday.” 

“I don’t think he would kick people out of the Hero Course, for students only staying a semester,” Midoriya muse’s half to himself. 

“Midoriya’s right. The twins will probably end up sharing a room,” Shinsou agreed. 

“That’s not very fair. It’s not like they’re little kids. They shouldn’t be forced to share because they’re twins.” Kirishima argues. Shinsou only shrugs.

“I don’t think that’s going to work,” the winged student admitted. His feathers ruffled behind him awkwardly. A completely endearing gesture. “We’re kind of in the middle of an argument right now. I don’t think having us in the same room would be good for anyone considering how explosive he can be.”

“Yeah, that doesn’t sound like a good thing. I bet that would be like Deku and Bakugou sharing a room,” Uraraka summarized casually. Everyone but the shinobi paled at the thought. 

Shinsou pulls his phone out of his pocket. “I should give Aizawa a heads up that that would be a terrible thing to do.” 

The redhead glanced at the clock. There was still another hour of detention left. With the speed they were moving earlier, they should be finishing up any minute now.   _‘Good. Maybe Bakugou could squeeze a nap in before it got dark.’_  For some reason, the explosive teen seemed to sleep a little more comfortable in the presence of others. Maybe his body refused to embarrass himself in front of people? Whatever the reason, that was why the infamous Bakusquad sleepovers suddenly doubled in number over the last few weeks. He was worried about Bakugou. His nightmares were only getting worse. It’s a miracle that no one else has figured it out, with how frequently he accidentally sets his quirk off in his sleep.

Kirishima frowns into his hot chocolate. It’s not just that he feels worried for his best friend, but he also feels guilty about the whole situation.   _‘He only started having nightmares again because I started having nightmares as well,’_ he thinks to himself, choosing to forget that it was because of him that they stopped in the first place. The tail he forgot he still had, began to droop with his self-deprecating thoughts. His near-death experience only cemented what he thought of his abilities as a hero. Kirishima was terrified that he’ll break again when others are depending on him. He was lucky because he had the support of his mentor Fat Gum, but what if he was alone next time?

Or worse, he was afraid that he could end up hurting someone with his quirk. A fear he’s carried with him ever since his quirk manifested itself, injuring himself and leaving a permanent reminder on his face. He’d lost count of how many times he accidentally injured Bakugou during one of his night terrors, and Kirishima suspects there’s even more that he doesn’t know about with how stealthy the ash-blonde could be. He’s thankful that Bakugou wasn’t in the room when he destroyed his bed a couple of weeks ago. Kirishima would never be able to forgive himself if he did something like that to him. 

Maybe that’s why Kirishima felt so drawn to the girl sitting next to him. Feeling a sort of kinship since she also struggled to control her quirk. Though her struggles were rooted in her self-consciousness and not in fear of hurting others. How could it? She’s the sweetest person he ever met. Kirishima wished he could be more like her. She didn’t have to worry about hurting anyone. About cutting people or herself with her quirk. 

Kirishima didn’t realize that he had been lost in a cycle of self-criticism until Tohru got his attention. She subtly brushes his side with her cat tail. His scarlet eyes were meeting caring sapphire ones, before she offered him one of those smiles that rivals the very sun that his friends always talk about. He’s never seen one before, and it takes his breath away.   _‘My friends actually think that I’m capable of that?’_ he thinks to himself, almost moved to manly tears. 

The red-heads matching cat ears twitched suddenly. Reacting to the abrupt ding of the elevator opening across the room. The excited squeals that escape it after it's doors open steals Kirishima's attention, causing him and Tohru to turn their heads in the direction of the commotion. There he sees Momo, Asui, and the floating clothes of Hagakure stepping out of the elevators.

“Oh, come on, you have to admit they’re super cute!”

“I don't have to admit anything of the sort,” Momo responds responsibly, but there’s a slight blush on her cheeks. Meanwhile, Asui had a finger held to her chin as if the thought had never occurred to her. Taking this opportunity to think it over for herself.

“You two are hopeless! I need Mina here to gossip with!” the invisible girl huffs, waving her arms frantically. The movement would have gone unnoticed if it weren't for the excessive amount of colorful bracelets on her wrists that jingled with every move. “Well, if you all don’t want to admit it, that’s fine with me. That just means I get first dibs on one of the twins.”

Kirishima cringes at that awkwardness of the situation. That declaration was just wrong on so many levels. First, it was dumb to assume that you can call dibs on a person like they don’t have wills or feelings of their own. Second, it was painfully awkward for everyone listening to ignore the fact that Hagakure had just ended a long relationship with Ojirou just the week before. The popular rumor floating around was that she got dumped because she was too needy. And finally, because both Ojiou and Tsubasa were easily within earshot, though both seemed to be occupied in their own conversations at the moment. 

“I don’t think it's very appropriate to discuss such matters openly,” Momo began quietly, trying to cut the conversation short before further drama could start. The Vice president quickened her pace. Hoping to herd the girls with her out of earshot of the rest of the class. Momo looked to Asui for help, but she was still thinking over Hagaukre’s previous statement. 

True to character, when Asui did speak up, she said whatever was on her mind. “Which one of the twins do you like the most?” Asui asked innocently, completely oblivious that she was adding more fuel to the fire. Momo looked like she wanted to facepalm, but her prodigious upbringing prevented her from doing so. 

“Kyo obviously. Who better to help me stand out than an exciting, fiery personality!” she lets out another excited squeal, which gets a few other people's attention. 

“Aren’t relationships supposed to be about feelings and compatibility?” Asui asked. 

“Maybe normal people have that luxury, but you have to admit that for Pro-Heroes, they’re more about the give and take,” Hagakure pointed out, so matter of fact. It was hard to call her out when what she said was true. They’ve all seen how many Pro-Heroes enter relationships and even marry one another to strengthen their Hero Agencies and gain popularity. To think that they had to think like that when they weren’t even out of high school was a tough pill to swallow. It made Kirishima wonder what his future with Bakugou would be like. If he had any at all.

Tohru also looked incredibly uncomfortable about the conversation. The twins were her teammates, after all. She had grown up with them and had even lived with them for years. Being forced to listen to someone she doesn’t know, talk about them like they were objects was probably incredibly difficult for her to do. Kirishima offers her a reassuring smile, his bright red fluffy tail waving happily behind him. That seemed to do the trick, for she immediately brightened up in response. 

A loud bang makes everyone jump as the front doors slam open. The wind having ripped the door from the now sopping wet forms of Kaminari, Sero, and Mina as they entered the building. They immediately collapse onto the floor in exhaustion, almost tripping Bakugou and Kyo, who followed closely behind them. Escorting them was the mostly dry form of Aizawa with an umbrella and his new adoptive daughter Eri. 

“Watch where you’re going losers!” Bakugou snaps.

“Us? You’re the one who nearly stepped on us,” Kaminari groans, too exhausted to even lift his head from where he’s currently lying on the floor. 

“Shut up!” Bakugou yells, crossing his arms.

“Take your own advice,” Kyo mutters, shaking his hair and body dry like a dog, spraying everyone around him with even more water. The trio on the floor groans in response while Bakugou just growls in disdain. Kyo, however, remained oblivious, finishing with a smile on his face, which highlighted his sharp canines. His orange hair disheveled by the act. “Ah, much better,” he practically purrs while resting an arm on Tohru’s shoulder, who had come to greet him. 

Aizawa watches this exchange with little interest. “You should all get changed and get some rest. Catching a cold will not get you out of class tomorrow,” the underground hero warned. By this time, most of the class had gathered around them. He looks over at the newcomers. “I was only able to get Shinsou and Eri’s rooms ready, thanks to this morning's disruptions. So, for now, you’ll have to find somebody to bunk with until I’m able to get them ready for you,” He finishes with a disapproving glare aimed directly at Kyo. A look that would put any sane person in their place, but of course, the shinobi only grinned like a Cheshire cat in response.  _‘_

 _This guy’s got a death wish,’_  Kirishima thinks to himself.   _‘Even Bakugou’s not stubborn enough to provoke a teacher.’_

Aizawa’s eye twitched in annoyance. “On second thought. It might be in everyone’s best interest to minimize damages by having the two ticking time bombs in the same room.” 

“What?!” Bakugou yells, his hands sparkling dangerously in anger. “Why do I have to get stuck with this psycho?!” He points a rude finger at the shinobi in question, who also doesn’t look thrilled about the idea, but remains quiet. Maybe he did have self-preservation instincts after all. 

“Have you looked in the mirror?” Sero mutters under his breath. A few snickers escaped the rest of the squad, only silenced by a swift kick to the ribs and a pained grunt.

“You don’t get a say, Bakugou,” Aizawa yawns, choosing to ignore Bakugou’s rough behavior towards his classmates. “The school has already spent an exorbitant amount of money reinforcing the walls to your room. Not to mention the intricate sprinkler and fire extinguisher system we had to get specially designed for you,” their teacher further explained in his no-nonsense tone. The hero’s mind was already made up, but to further drive the point across, he continued, “Unless you want a repeat of the fire alarm incident.” 

Bakugou immediately shuts up. His crimson eyes were averting their gaze in defeat. The slightest traces of a blush on his cheeks, the only hint that he was embarrassed, or as close to embarrassed that Bakugou could get. 

 _‘Oh yeah, I almost forgot about that,’_  Kirishima thought back to a couple of weeks before his internship. What started as a prank war, quickly escalated into   _Apocalypse Now,_  when Kaminari tried to play a prank on Bakugou. The dummy had snuck into the other blondes room, a GoPro fastened securely to their   _“Idiot Helmet,”_  while Bakugou was sleeping and shocked him with his quirk. Thinking it was a villain attack, Bakugou exploded, attacking on instinct. Thankfully, Bakugou realized it was Kaminari and managed not to hit the idiot in the face with one of his biggest explosions. The bad news was that he ended up blowing a hole in the floor, and they both crashed into Iida’s room below. 

The sudden plummet caused Kaminari to accidentally set off his quirk in fear as he fell, which resulted in a large electrical fire. Successfully shorting out most of the dorm's electrical system in the span of a few seconds. Thankfully, their class president was busy dealing with a noise complaint on the second floor at the time of the incident. Inadvertently, being saved from being crushed thanks to Darkshadow’s habit of listening to loud music when Tokoyami was passed out.  

The resulting flames immediately caught Iida’s vast book collection on fire, which of course, blocked their escape route. Thinking fast and probably as payback, Bakugou created a new opening by breaking into Kaminari’s adjacent room. By this time, the fire alarm was blaring, and everyone was scrambling to get outside. Checking on their neighbors as they went. Kirishima’s cheeks felt hot with embarrassment as he recalled how Shoji had to literally drag him away from Bakugou’s burning dorm room. The terrifying experience adding to his already long list of recurring nightmares. 

In the end, no one was seriously injured. Only a few burns here and there. Worse, they had to wait outside in the freezing cold in nothing, but their Pj’s as the dorms were put out. While it only took about an hour to put out the fire, the fire alarm continued to blare all night long. An unfortunate side effect of Kaminari frying the electrical system.

Needless to say, no one got any sleep that night. Because of this incident, dorm rooms and the building itself had to be tailored to every student's quirks. An aggravatingly long process, with lots of bunking with other classmates as all their rooms were customized for everyone’s safety. It wasn’t their friend group's proudest moment, but it did give the Bakusquad’s social media page their first viral video. Though the relevance of that feat was different depending on who you asked. For the record, Kirishima thought the footage was pretty manly. 

Aizawa coughed to get everyone’s attention. “Along with these four, Eri will also be moving into the dorms now that there is no one to watch her at home. So, everyone better be on their best behavior,” he explained, looking down at the shy little girl hiding slightly behind him. She brightens up when she sees Midoriya, Uraraka, Asui, and Kirishima. Recognizing them from the mission to save her. She waves happily at each of them. “Yaoyorozu, could you please get her settled in the dorms? She will be moving into the room next to yours. Shinsou will be staying in the remaining boys' dorm on that floor as well. I’m counting on both of you to help her with anything she needs.”

“Of course, Sensei!” Momo says happily. Her eyes were sparkling joyfully with being trusted with such an important task. 

To the rest of the class, he added, “I’m sure you all will make an effort to make her feel at home here.”  

The class let out an excited cheer in response, everyone but Bakugou, who took this opportunity to sneak away to an isolated corner of the room. The friendly faces of Midoriya and Uraraka already making their way to greet her. She smiles happily at them. Letting go of her hold on Aizawa’s leg and reaching up to be picked up by the freckled face boy. Giggling as she went. Aizawa hides the smile threatening to show on his face behind his capture weapon. Once Aizawa was sure she was in good hands, he made his way to his office.

“Hello, Eri!” Kirishima greeted them once she joined them at their table. He held the plate adorning an assortment of homemade cookies up to her from where she currently sat on top of Midoriya’s shoulders. Taking her attention away from playing with the fluffy bunny ears on top of his head. After studying them for a couple of seconds, she settles on an adorably decorated rabbit cookie, which made Midoriya turn an impressive shade of red. Her scarlet eyes were twinkling with more life than Kirishima had ever seen her express before. “Are you excited about living here with everyone?” he asked gently.

Eri blushes at the attention, fighting the urge to hide her face behind Midoriya’s head. She smiles shyly at him, warming his heart in the process. “Yes…” she answers quietly. Her sweet voice barely over a whisper. Kirishima was content to leave it at that, knowing how shy Eri could be but was surprised when she continued. “I’m really happy to be here with everyone. I want to make as many friends as I can.” Her face was brightening a little more after her last sentence. 

The manliest of tears poured down his face after hearing that. It took all his will power not to give her the biggest bear hug of her life right then and there. Managing to stop himself after realizing such a sudden act would be sure to traumatize the poor girl more than she already was. So instead, he opted to give her a thumbs up while he continued to cry at the pureness of her sweet self. A few others close by were also overwhelmed by the cuteness of their newest dormmate. 

“Would you like matching bunny ears?~” Tohru asked gently in her usual sing-song voice. Her sapphire eyes were sparkling with warmth. The brown cat ears twitching cutely on top of her head.

Eri immediately nodded her head. “Please?” her little voice begged. The barest traces of excitement echoing in her voice. 

The brunette giggled in response. Tohru softly claps her hands together before bringing her hands close to Eri. Tohru’s movements are slow. Making sure not to make any sudden movements and not to physically touch her. Mindful of her personal space. Kirishima wasn't sure if Tohru had been briefed on Eri’s situation beforehand or if she was able to sense Eri’s timidness from the short encounters she had with her. 

The redhead didn’t think Eri could get any cuter, but seeing her with large fluffy bunny ears on top of her and the resulting smile she sported after seeing her reflection was the cutest thing he has ever seen. “Thank you!” she squeaked, the loudness of her voice scarring her a little before she erupted in a fit of giggles. She immediately skipped over to show her new brother, who was already busy documenting it on his phone. 

“Thank you for that Honda-san,” Midoriya said, taking a seat at the table. His emerald eyes were watching the little girl fondly. “You made her first night here an exciting experience.”

“I’m happy to help~” Tohru assures with a smile. “And there’s no need to be so formal. Because of the twins, we always use our first names. So please call me Tohru~.”

“Oh, that reminds me!” Uraraka cuts in. Copying Iida’s choppy hand motions to keep her mind focused on the task at hand. “Tohru, would you like to stay in my room?” Uraraka asked happily. Her tail was waving at the speed of light, threatening to hit anyone who got to close.

“No way! She’s got to bunk with me!” Mina declared from across the room as she jumped to her feet. Her previous fatigue completely forgotten. She grabs Tohru’s hands in hers. “Please, Tohru! I haven’t had a chance to hang out with you at all today!” She finishes with a pout that even tugged at Kirishima’s heartstrings. 

The brunette is immediately overwhelmed. Her head was frantically looking from Uraraka to Mina and back again. “How about I sleep in Mina’s room first and then Uraraka’s room second?” Tohru offered anxiously. Trying her best to accommodate everyone. “Does that sound fair?

The two girls looked at each other for a few moments, before looking back at Tohru. “Deal!” they both cheered, wrapping Tohru in the cutest group hug. Both comically pushed Kyo--who was still using Tohru as an armrest--roughly out of the way to do so. Ignoring his aggravated protests.

“Is that even necessary? Aren’t there like a bunch of empty girl rooms?” Sero asked, ever the voice of reason. 

“Shh, don’t ruin this for us,” was all Mina said in response. Pushing him away from them with one hand.

“Hey! Who stole a tray of my cupcakes!” a yell sounds from the kitchen. A few seconds later, an aggravated Satou comes through the doorway with a tray in each hand.

All eyes look to Mina, who only shrugs. “Don’t look at me. I haven’t been here long enough for that.” 

He lets out an angry sigh, still not convinced, but lets it go. “Well, whoever did it ruined my surprise,” Satou grumbles as he sets the remaining cupcakes on the table in front of them. Each was brightly decorated in the UA colors in his famous buttercream frosting. “I made these for everyone to welcome our new classmates.”

Everyone immediately brightens. “Welcome to class 1A!” everyone cheers in unison as if they had been planning it for months. The newcomer's eyes widen in surprise at the genuinely kind gesture. Even Shinsou looked touched by it. 

 

**_Bakugou P. O. V._ **

      

While everyone else was celebrating, Bakugou had made himself comfy in the corner seat of the couch. His arms crossed behind his head. Hoping to doze off for a little while before he’s forced to share a room with that quirk copycat. He was dreading sharing a room, knowing he wouldn’t be able to have Kirishima over. That was shitty in itself, but he also had to worry about the whole nightmare thing as well. Fuck everything about his life right now. 

He just needed a few minutes of peace. Bakugou already knew that he wouldn’t be able to enjoy his solitude for long. It was just a matter of time before one of his annoying classmates attempted to wake him up to join in on the   _“fun.”_ He guesses that’s something he could respect about Kyo. The shinobi seemed to know when to leave Bakugou alone. After their discussion earlier, he had backed off, giving the ash-blonde the space he needed. Turning his attention on toying with Kaminari and Sero. 

Bakugou cracks an eye open to scan his surroundings. Sure enough, he sees a mop of bright orange hair quickly within the crowd of mostly neutral colors of their class. Currently chatting happily with his female teammate and the idiot brigade. They've seen to have made themselves comfortable within his small group of friends. Not the worst thing he supposes. The ash-blonde closes his eyes once more. He didn’t need anyone to catch him awake. 

 

The ash-blonde managed to doze off for a little bit before the cushion he was sitting on shifts slightly underneath him, announcing someone’s presence. The movement stirs Bakugou from his slumber, but he keeps his eyes closed. Hoping to dissuade the person from bothering him. “You can stop pretending, it’s only me,” came Kirishima’s hushed voice. Bakugou doesn’t react. “I sent everyone to get us some dinner from the cafeteria. I told them to get you something that would melt a normal person’s face off.” 

“That’s still not going to be spicy enough,” Bakugou complains with his eyes closed, but the corners of his mouth slowly raise into a small smile. Kirishima lets out a laugh. Knowing that while it was a joke, it was also incredibly accurate. Bakugou's smile widens at the sound. 

The ash-blonde slowly blinks his eyes open. It takes a few moments for them to adjust to the light. Sure enough, the majority of the common room was empty. The only stragglers being Koda and Tokoyami studying quietly together in the corner. The blonde let out a yawn as he stretches. “How long have I been asleep?” 

“A little over an hour.” Kirishima answers cheerfully, the cat ears he had earlier no longer on top of his head. Bakugou nods, settling back into the couch. That was more of a nap than he was hoping to get. He doubted he was going to get much sleep that night. As if reading his mind Kirishima continued. “Mina wants to have a sleepover tonight with everyone. We were gonna start after everyone ate.”

“Maybe we should just make every night a sleepover until the Carrot top is out of my room,” Bakugou retorts, stifling a yawn. Not the worst idea since sleepovers were the only way that seemed to keep his nightmares away. Though there was no viable excuse to do so that the squad would believe. Not without confessing about his nightmares to everyone. “I should make that copycat sleep on the patio.”

Kirishima frowns at that. “I could say it would help with my nightmares?” The redhead offered. He laid back into the couch, his shoulder brushing Bakugou’s ever so slightly. They tried to keep intimate touching to a minimum when they weren’t in their rooms. Even this was pushing it for Bakugou, but he couldn’t deny that the contact felt nice in this situation.

He lets out a frustrated sigh. “No, it’s fine. I’ll figure it out somehow.” Bakugou takes this opportunity to roll his stiffening shoulders. “So, what did I miss today?”

Kirishima smiles his famous shark-toothed grin. He excitedly begins recounting the day's events, everything from his fight with Tohru to the encounters that happened while he slept. Both happy just being in each other’s company after a long chaotic day. 

“I think you’d really like Tohru. I bet you’d enjoy sparring with her.”

“It could be interesting,” Bakugou admitted. After hearing more about how her quirk worked, it could definitely have some unique fighting capabilities that would be entertaining to fight against. “Though if all it took was to make her lose focus. Defeating her should be fairly easy.” 

Shitty-Hair pouts at that. “Your wrong. She’s just not used to fighting while a bunch of people are watching. She’ll be amazing next time around. You’ll see!” Kirishima defended valiantly. 

“Whatever.”

“Well, what about you?” Shitty-Hair began, a shark-toothed grin spreading across his face. “What do you think of the shinobi? You seemed to be enjoying your fight with Kyo earlier.”

“They’re alright, I guess,” Bakugou says, looking away. There was no use denying that he’s already taken a liking to them, despite himself. Especially since Kirishima has always been able to read him like a book. Bakugou did enjoy his fight earlier. He didn’t even mind that he was forced to clean for the rest of the day to make up for it. He was absolutely pissed that the fight had ended in a tie. He’s  _never_ **_ever,_ ** tied in anything before. He was itching for a rematch. Bakugou was still struggling with their chosen career path, but personality-wise, they didn’t seem so bad. “They’re preferable to half of our annoying class, at least.”

“Is that any way to treat the people who got food for you?” a voice calls from across the room. Both boys turn to see a group of their classmates returning with multiple trays of food balanced precariously between them. Mina and Sero holding two trays each, while Kaminari used his free hand to eat a green popsicle like his life depended on it. The trio and a few classmates were trailing leisurely behind them.

“What’s Pikachu’s problem?” Bakugou asked boredly, completely ignoring Sero’s question.

Mina lets out a laugh at her friend's expense. “He thought he could handle a bite of your curry,” she explains, waving the tray in her right hand. The smell drifting from the plate was enough to confirm to Bakugou that it was just spicy enough to be palatable by his standards but would kill an average person. His stomach rumbles in response. He hadn’t had a chance to eat since the apple he had for breakfast. 

Bakugou rolls his eyes at them. “I guess that means you idiots forgot to grab some hot sauce as well?” Bakugou muttered, making a move for the tray. Only to have Kaminari grab it from Mina before Bakugou was able to reach it. 

“You’re so ungrateful!” Kaminari complains, his words difficult to understand with the popsicle still in his mouth. He gives the frozen treat another loud slurp before awkwardly pulling it from his mouth. His tongue still comically swelled up from his near-death experience earlier. “I almost died from your devilish meal, and that’s all you’re worried about?”

“Are you really that surprised?” Sero asked, giving his friend a comforting pat on the shoulder. “I’m pretty sure Bakugou could eat Hell Fire, and he would still complain that it wasn’t hot enough.”

“Damn straight. Now give me my food.”

“What are you a heathen?” Kyo joked playfully, as he came to rest an arm on Kaminari’s shoulders. In his hand was a half-eaten popsicle that matched his bright hair perfectly. His eyes were sparkling with its usual deviousness. “Why can’t you eat at the table like a normal person?” 

“Fuck you! I do what I want,” Bakugou retorted, jumping to his feet. His eyes were daring Kyo to challenge him again on the matter. He was eager to pick up where they left off that morning. His hands were already beginning to sweat more in preparation for a fight. “You got a problem with that, CarrotTop?” 

One of the shinobi’s eyes twitched in annoyance at the comment. Bakugou smirked when he realized he discovered one of Kyo’s pet peeves. “Maybe I do,” Kyo retorts, standing up straight. Aggressively handing over the remainder of his popsicle to Mina. The temperature in the room was starting to rise as Kyo prepared to activate his own quirk. “What are you going to do about it?”

While the explosive boys measured each other up like an old western movie. Ready to act the second, the other made a move. Onlookers slowly started backing away to avoid getting caught up in their fight. Though before they could even begin, a cry broke their attention, causing them to stop in their tracks. 

“Oh no, Eri, your ice cream is melting!” Bakugou’s eyes drifted towards the sound to see Ribbons gently take the ice cream cone from the little rugrat. Quickly trying to clean up the mess and wrapping it with napkins, before returning it to the mildly distressed girl. 

By the time Bakugou looked back to his opponent, Kyo had already relaxed his stance. His quirk switched off, and the room’s temperature was going back to normal. Noticing Bakugou’s baffled expression, the shinobi simply shrugged. “Rain check?” he asked in a bored tone. Suddenly losing interest in their fight. He didn’t even wait for Bakugou’s response before walking away to retrieve his orange creamsicle from Horns. Enjoying his frozen treat as he apologized to Eri, who now saw at one of the tables. 

Everyone watching was sure that Kyo was going to suddenly burst into flames from the deadly glare their explosive friend was giving him, but alas nothing happened. Nervously, the rest of the class followed Kyo’s example and began eating their dinners. Shooting Bakugou nervous glances every now and then as they ate.

Bakugou was fuming as he stubbornly continued to stand where he was. Staying there for a couple more minutes before reluctantly giving in. With a loud curse, Bakugou follows after his sorry excuse for friends. Dropping heavily in the seat between Kirishima and Sero. Being sure to stab at his food, extra aggressively as he ate.   _‘Stupid fucking quirk copycat motherfucking Shinobi,’_ the blonde yells in his head, imagining the curry was Kyo’s stupid face. The ash-blonde continued to shoot Kyo with murderous looks as he ate. The only thing stopping him from climbing over the table to blow that smug look off the shinobi’s face was Kirishima’s hardened hand on his knee holding him in place.   _‘Lucky bastard.’_

Kyo looked like he wanted to comment on Bakugou’s overly aggressive eating habits, but held his tongue for once. It appeared that the orange-haired idiot was finally running out of steam. His eyes were steadily beginning to droop as time passed. Ribbons seemed to be monitoring his behavior closely. Whispering in his ear when she caught him nodding off. Though the shinobi would only laugh it off. He would then whisper something back to her, give her a reassuring nudge, and then start a conversation with someone at the table. It was almost like they were…   _‘Oh,’_ was all Bakugou could think as he watched the scenes unfold before him.   _‘That’s unexpected.’_

 

**_Tsubasa P. O. V._ **

 

All the common room tables had to be pushed together to accommodate the entire class for dinner. According to Midoriya, the whole class had never eaten all together like this before. Usually preferring to eat in their own friend groups. It seems everyone was eager to learn more about their mysterious new classmates. 

The newcomers were forced to sit at the center of the table. Sitting on Tsubasa’s immediate left was the bubbly girl Uraraka. She had quickly become friends with Tohru, but also made an effort to be friendly with him as well. Sitting across the table from her was Kyo and Tohru, who was sandwiched between Kaminari and Mina. To the wind users right was Midoriya, who had served as their guide for most of the day. Shinsou had been with them earlier but had excused himself to put little Eri to bed. Promising to join them all for the class sleepover in a couple of hours. 

Tsubasa was overall, relieved to have been accepted into the class so readily, with the only minor hiccup in their plans--so far--being his brother’s impulsive behavior. Though, all the dreamwalker wanted was to find a comfortable place to sleep. He was exhausted. And he wasn’t the only one. 

The brunette risked another glance at his brother. While Kyo continued to grin, and make small talk with everyone, it was clear to Tsubasa that he was ready to drop at any second. Not only was he still recovering from his injuries from their last mission, but he had also recklessly picked a fight with one of the class’s strongest fighters. Then foolishly pushed his body even further by continuously blowing up the rubble in the pouring rain for hours.   _‘As usual, his stamina knows no bounds.’_ There was no point in scolding him. Kyo refused to speak with him since waking up from his accident. 

Mostly Tsubasa forced himself to stay awake so he would be able to monitor the conversations his teammates had with the class. Jumping in to answer for his teammates whenever someone asked about their background or past to minimize slip-ups. 

For shinobi, Kyo and Tohru were terrible at keeping secrets, especially with people they got along with. They could withstand the most extensive torture imaginable and wouldn’t say a peep, but will tell their friends anything with the littlest amount of prodding. It baffled Tsubasa to no end. 

“The Hitsuzen twins, huh? That means   _"inevitable,"_  right?” the girl with pink skin and horns asked beside Tohru. She was chewing thoughtfully on a purple pixie stick, with an excessive number of wrappers littering her food tray. “That’s such a mysterious name!” she cooed, clapping her hands together. The gold in her eyes was sparkling, giving the illusion that they were glowing. 

“Very ominous indeed,” The dark avian student agreed farther down the table. The comment making the shinobi nervous, but the rest of the class didn’t pay it much mind. 

“Is it that strange of a name?” Tsubasa asked, his voice wavering ever so slightly. He willed his wings to lie entirely still against his back. He also noted how his brother’s body stiffened subtly as well. “No one’s ever commented on it before,” he lied behind a smile. 

“Not at all!” Uraraka defended beside him suddenly. Startling him slightly from the abruptness of her words. She noticed his reaction and continued at a reasonable volume. “I don’t think it’s strange at all. In fact, I think it would make a great hero name!”

“What are you an idiot? They’re not trying to be heroes,” Bakugou cut in absently, still stabbing violently at his food as he ate. 

“Don’t mind, Bakugou,” she whispered in Tsubasa’s ear. “He’s just grumpy because it’s past his bedtime.” 

“Uraraka, he’ll hear you!” Midoriya shushed on the other side of the shinobi. His face was sweating profusely as he looked nervously at the ash-blonde a few seats down from them. The explosive teen in question didn’t appear to have heard her remark, for he was now muttering something to the redhead beside him. 

Tsubasa smiled in relief as the conversation started drifting to other topics. Most chatting excitedly with one another about the new classes they’ll be taking part in starting tomorrow. He listened to their conversations thoughtfully, redirecting the conversation to safer topics when he thought it was necessary. Often exploiting Midoriya’s love for knowledge against him. 

Aizawa had entrusted Tsubasa specifically to do damage control. Mainly by distracting Midoriya and his friends from the truth of their mission, since they had a habit of getting into trouble. A task made incredibly easy since the freckled boy sought him out immediately. 

Despite the headaches of the morning. Tsubasa’s enjoyed his time learning about this new world. The power system here was impressive. It was different than any of the worlds they’ve visited before. According to Aizawa, this world still didn’t have a clear reason why people suddenly started developing these “Quirks.” It fascinated Tsubasa tremendously. That’s why he humored Midoriya’s long-winded ramblings. The winged teen had been guilty of similar behavior regarding subjects that interested in him. Though he hoped he wasn’t as over the top as the freckled boy sitting beside him. However, if Tohru’s giggling were any indication, he probably was. 

Midoriya had allowed him to look through his hero notebooks when Tsubasa expressed an interest in them. Though the cover and edges were burned, the insides were surprisingly in great condition. As Tsubasa flipped through, he saw everyone one of his classmates as well as numerous people he had never seen before, within its pages. Each one had a full-body illustration in what he assumed were everyone’s hero costumes. The artwork was passable, but clearly not his forte. Where it really shined were his notes and explanations. He had everyone's stats listed as well as battles each student had been in during the school year. Midoriya also had lists of battles that had yet to pass and predictions of who would win. 

It was incredibly well written and organized. The more Tsubasa read it, the more he began to see the similarities between Midoriya and himself. It reminded Tsubasa of the book he and his brother collaborated on to document the many worlds they’ve visited. Tsubasa would write the history, and Kyo would illustrate it for him.   _‘Guess that makes Bakugou Midoriya's version of Kyo,’_ Tsubasa thinks frowning to himself. Noticing that the green-haired boy sneaks just as many looks at the explosive blond that Tsubasa does for his hotheaded brother. 

The information provided in Midoriya’s notebooks was almost on par with the info Aizawa had provided them. Tsubasa was very impressed with the boy's awareness of his surroundings. He now understands why Tsubasa was tasked with keeping an eye on him. Someone, this highly attuned with the world around him, could easily stumble onto their secret if left unchecked. ‘  _Shouldn’t be too hard to keep him busy.’_

Someone taps on his shoulder, breaking him out of his thoughts. He looks up to see the familiar form of Shinsou standing above him. His indigo eyes were looking as tired as ever despite the cup of coffee in his hands. “Aizawa wants to go over tomorrow’s lesson with the three of you,” Shinsou yawns, pointing a thumb behind him toward the teacher's office down the hall.  

“Thank you, Shinsou,” Tsubasa replied, carefully standing up. Stretching his arms and wings as he did so. Giving his wings a couple of slow test flaps before allowing them to rest once again against his back. Words couldn't express how thrilled he was about being in a world where he could display his wings openly. Regularly having to hide their existence from everyone. A task that was incredibly difficult to do, considering they immediately come out when he uses his foresight or dream walking abilities. “We’ll be right there.”

The screeching of chairs a few feet away alerted him that Kyo and Tohru were also getting out of their seats. The three of them wrapping up their conversations before heading to Aizawa’s office. Assuring everyone that they will hurry back for the class sleepover in the lounge. 

 

 

**_Kyo P. O. V._ **

 

It was surprisingly dark in the underground hero's office. Three gaudy looking lamps were placed haphazardly around the space, but judging from the thick layer of dust covering each, they had never been switched on. The only light came from the monitor on his desk. The bluish light cast long overdramatized shadows on the few possessions in the room. If the computer remained untouched for a few minutes, the screen would display photos of his students holding signs that recounted the shameful behavior they had been caught exhibiting at one point or another. The signs read statements like, “I broke my body again.” “I threatened a group of kids and made them cry,” and “I broke a priceless hero artifact at the museum,” There was even a photo of All Might with a sign that read, “I allowed two students to engage in a reckless battle outside of class.” The teacher seemed to enjoy embarrassing his students. It was only when Tohru tripped over a box that he finally turned one of the lamps on.

Kyo had been expecting a lecture for his behavior earlier, but the hero remained silent on the matter. Instead, Aizawa leaned casually against his desk and started explaining the series of Hero and Quirkless exercises they would be teaching that week. Taking a moment every now and then to take a sip from his juice box. His scarf and goggles were resting beside the photo on his desk of Aizawa, Shinsou, and Eri.   

The volatile teen tried his hardest to pay attention to Aizawa’s explanation, but the words were muffled in his aching head. His whole body hurt, having reached his limit hours ago. Sometimes he hated his competitive nature. He should’ve listened to his brother and taken it easy, considering his body was still healing. But naturally, because it was Tsubasa who had suggested it, Kyo had stupidly done the opposite.   _‘Maybe ignoring the advice from someone who can see the future wasn’t the best idea,’_ Kyo thought miserably. He was so thankful that Tohru managed to stop him from fighting Bakugou again that evening. He would have died. No doubt about it. 

It wasn’t just his injuries that had him feeling like crap. The shinobi was overheating from not triggering his detonation powers, resulting in a fever that left him feeling muggy. Something he could quickly remedy with a cat nap, but he had been enjoying himself too much to do that earlier. 

Apparently, Kyo not only felt like crap, but he also looked like it as well. Aizawa immediately took notice that something wasn't right with him. The shinobi tried to play it off, but the hero wasn’t having it. After some questionable interrogation techniques, Kyo finally caved and admitted that he was hurting after pushing his body too hard. The hero’s expression softened ever so slightly with this information. 

That’s how Kyo ended up here. Half slumped in a chair--shirtless--while Tohru healed his wounds with her medical ninjutsu in the privacy of the office. A pair of orange cat ears lying flat against his head to make him heal up faster. Aizawa had been relieved when he learned about Tohru’s healing ninjutsu. He wanted to avoid their contact with Recovery Girl if they could help it since they weren’t sure how her quirk would mingle with their advanced healing capabilities and other-worldly bodies.

Tohru’s hand was basked in dazzling blue light as she hovered it a few inches from his body. The injuries underneath slowly healing as she went. The underground hero seemed mesmerized by her medical ninjutsu. While he started off talking mostly to Tsubasa, as time passed, his eyes would linger on them as she worked.   _‘Understandable. If our mission goes south, at least we can use this power to save as many lives as we can.’_

Kyo watched his teammate work in comfortable silence. The injuries he sustained that morning were healed up without a trace. Though not all his wounds could be healed so cleanly. After she finished healing his fresher wounds, the brunette had moved on to treating his previous injuries. Though there was little more, she could do for them at this point, besides taking some of the aches away. 

Kyo inspected the faint pierce scars that littered his arms. The scars appeared star-shaped in nature. Something easily missed if they didn’t catch the light in the right way. However, they became more pronounced as they traveled up his arms, past his shoulders, until they eventually stopped just short of his heart. As far as scars go, they healed rather nicely, but still fairly obvious. It helped that Tohru was right there when it happened; otherwise, he would have died from blood loss. Despite this, no amount of medical ninjutsu would ever be able to erase them from existence. No matter how much Tohru wished, it would.

He could see her unshed tears welling up in her sapphire eyes, but she willed them not to fall. Kyo smiled gently at her and rested his forehead against hers to make her feel better. The comforting gesture caught her off guard, causing her to pause for a moment. Her eyes slowly looked up to meet his.

There were so many swirling emotions swimming in their depths, Kyo wasn’t sure which one was the most dominant.   _‘Was it sadness, relief, fear, or guilt?’_  He couldn’t tell. These conflicting emotions soon melted away until nothing but happiness and affection remained. A blinding smile on her face. One as bright as the two-sun sunset, they saw a few worlds back. The brilliance tarnished slightly, knowing that the other emotions persisted somewhere deep inside her. 

The volatile teen could feel Aizawa’s gaze on him. Maybe if he had more energy, he would have made a joke about it, but even the thought of laughing almost made him sick. Instead, Kyo’s tired crimson eyes followed the teacher’s gaze, which was focused on the scars on his chest. The teacher regarded them with a difficult to read expression. 

If someone were to guess the cause, they would assume that someone stabbed him repeatedly and was fought off before reaching his heart. They, of course, would be wrong. The injuries were not inflicted by being stabbed, but instead by being pierced repeatedly from the inside. That, and they did not stop before his heart, well at least not before Tsubasa rewound time to save him before the final blow was made. Rewinding time, of course, did not save him from the rest of his injuries, which he still almost succumbed to thanks to his pierced lungs. 

“There. You’re all done Kyo!~” Tohru chimed in her adorable sing-song voice, snapping him from his thoughts. Her hands were just finishing wrapping the bandages on his chest while leaving his arms bare. 

“Mvto! Thank you, Tohru!” Kyo thanked in his mother’s tongue, a bright smile on his face. Tohru never failed to make him feel better. He reaches for the black shirt next to him and quickly pulled it over his head. It was almost time for the class sleepover, and Kyo was ready to finally get some sleep. 

“Hold it,” Aizawa instructed, blocking the way to the door with his body. A sense of dread washed over Kyo as he stared at the teacher. Aizawa’s eyes were fixed on the scars still visible on his arms. “You think I’m going to see those wounds and not ask anything about it?”

Kyo scratched the back of his head in annoyance. “I was kinda hopin’ you wouldn’t,” he answered truthfully. Aizawa was unimpressed by this answer. His emotionless eyes were continuing to bore into him. Kyo looks to his brother for help, but he looked just as uncomfortable. “It’s a long story,” the shinobi answered finally. 

“Then summarize it,” Aizawa stated simply, crossing his arms impatiently.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for taking so long with this chapter. I was procrastinating because I didn't feel like writing a filler chapter. Next chapter shouldn't take as long. In the next chapter we'll start to see what sort of classes the shinobi will be teaching. I hope you're enjoying the story so far! I have a lot of plans for these characters. I hope you stick around to see what's to come.


	5. From Shinobi to Hero

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kirishima reminisces about a trip he took with Bakugou, while Aizawa offers first hand knowledge about the shinobi's role within society.

 

 

**_Kirishima P. O. V._ **

 

The summer air was warm and humid, making his crimson locks fall in front of his eyes and stick to his forehead. He constantly had to brush them out of his way, but he continued to trudge on. Ignoring the pain of the straps of his large camping backpack digging into his shoulders. Despite his discomfort, he didn’t dare ask for a break to fix them. There simply wasn’t time. They were racing the setting sun, desperately trying to reach the summit before nightfall. Though for what, the redhead had no idea.

The ash-blonde had surprised him one Saturday morning with an impromptu camping trip. He had packed enough supplies for both of them and secured permission from Aizawa and his parents but failed to inform the redhead of his plans. He only found out when Bakugou had entered his room and started dragging him out of bed. Ignoring all the sleepy complaints and practically dressed Kirishima as he mumbled questions about the rude awakening. Before he knew it, he was packed into a car with Bakugou and his dad, with a Honey and Oats granola bar placed in his mouth like a pacifier. 

With something in his stomach, Kirishima finally started to feel himself come back to life. Bakugou finally explained that he was taking him to one of his favorite hiking spots. “You said you wanted to come along the next time I went,” the ash-blonde remarked, turning away from him, from where he sat beside him in the back seat. The tips of his ears turning a light shade of pink. 

That made Kirishima smile. “Thanks, man! But you could have let me know ahead of time.”

“It was a last-minute thing,” Bakugou lied, sinking deeper into his seat, his ears turning redder. 

Kirishima suppressed a chuckle.   _‘Yeah, sure it was.’_ The redhead noticed that Mr. Bakugou was also trying not to laugh at how obvious his son was being. Man, Kirishima loved the Bakugou’s. 

The mountain was a two-hour drive away. The car ride was quiet but peaceful. Bakugou ended up taking a nap for most of it, while Kirishima passed the time looking out the window and striking a conversation with Mr. Bakugou now and then. 

Kirishima already knew that Bakugou had gotten into hiking because of his dad. The two of them had done numerous hiking and mountain climbing trips together over the years. They had climbed every mountain in Japan at least once and every trail at least twice, so it came as a surprise when it was revealed that Mr. Bakugou wouldn’t be joining them. Unfortunately, he had an important work trip he couldn’t miss during their annual camping trip. Only able to give them a ride there and back since it was already on his way. 

So the two boys loaded the heavy camping packs onto their shoulders and hiked up Nozomi Mountain by themselves. The mountain wasn’t the tallest in Japan by any means, but it was the Bakugou family’s favorite. It had trails for everyone, from beginners like Bakugou’s mom Mitsuki; to hazardous rocking climbing trails for those with tons of experience like Bakugou himself. Whatever path you took, it was stunning thanks to the small about of foot traffic it received. Most people didn’t even know about it because you had to walk through an unmarked forest before the trails even started. 

As they hiked one of the middle-grade trails for Kirishima’s benefit, Bakugou shared that this was the first mountain he had ever climbed. When his father asked if he wanted to go camping when he was four, Bakugou said he only wanted to go if they climbed the tallest mountain in Japan. Knowing he wouldn’t be able to handle a trip like that at that age, his father had tricked him and said that it was. While Bakugou figured out the truth once he got back home, he never enjoyed any other camping trip than the ones on this mountain. So he forgave him. After that, any time they needed to get away from the world around them, the family would pack into their car and head here. Even his mother, who hated the outdoors, would join in on occasion. Though she would bitch the whole time. 

Kirishima listened to his friend in respectful silence. It was the most he’s ever heard Bakugou talk about anything besides how much he hated Deku. He never realized how significant these outings were to him. He felt honored to be invited to tag along to one of his family’s favorite traditions. Despite the ache in his shoulders or the damp hair smacking him in the face with every step, Kirishima continued to smile the whole way up the mountain. With each step and every childhood memory shared, he felt like he was becoming closer to the supposed Beast of Class 1-A. 

After six hours of hiking, they finally reached the summit. “We made it!” Kirishima yelled, throwing his arms into the air in victory. However, the action made him unbalanced, and he quickly fell over backward due to the weight of the camping pack still attached to his back. Landing with an   **_“Oof!”_ ** as he laid there comically like a turtle stuck on his back. 

“Stop messing around, Shitty-Hair,” Bakugou scolded, though he offered him a helping hand up. Kirishima took it gratefully. Apologizing with a chuckle as he did so. “Whatever, we still have a shit ton of stuff to do while we still have some light.”

That was true. The sun had just started to set. Painting the sky, a breathtaking display of oranges and pinks as it enveloped the wispy clouds in the distance. Everything from the forest to the lake at the base of the mountain and the connecting waterfall was enveloped in beautiful orangish gold light. The view was breathtaking. Kirishima wanted nothing more than to stare at this forever. 

A sudden click brought him back to reality. His scarlet eyes moved towards the sound only to get distracted by the equally dazzling scene in front of him. Bakugou stood before him, his hair looking golden in the brilliant light. The sight took Kirishima’s breath away. His face looking soft for a second, before looking annoyed. “Didn’t you hear me? We got stuff to do.”

“R-Right!” Kirishima stammered with a blush, grabbing random pieces of their tent and trying to connect them, despite them not going together. The blonde watched him for a second before rolling his eyes. Yanking one of the pieces from him and gently handing him the correct part. The redhead nodded his thanks before getting back to work. 

By the time they finished setting up camp, the sun had just finished setting. The last traces of orange and pink faded to shades of purple and light blues, and even they were slowly paling in brilliance. Bakugou had brought an assortment of ingredients to make campfire kabobs for dinner, also bringing different types of meat to roast since that was Kirishima’s favorite. Though after a few kabobs, Bakugou started making them for the redhead when he just loaded his with beef. 

“No, you’re not pulling that shit like the rest of those idiots. You have to eat a fucking vegetable!” 

“Alright. Alright!” Kirishima laughed, his hands raised in surrender. “So, are you finally going to tell me why you dragged me up here?”

“I already told you. My family comes here every year, but they’re all busy this time,” Bakugou stated nonchalantly. He leans back and twists his lean body to grab one of his packs. He unzips it and starts rummaging through its possessions. “Besides, I wasn’t about to sit in a light-polluted city during one of the biggest meteor showers of the decade,” Bakugou remarks, pulling a telescope from his backpack. A determined smirk on his face. 

Kirishima practically jumped to his feet. “Dude! Are you serious!” the redhead exclaimed, his voice full of childlike excitement. His eyes scanning the still darkening sky. The first couple of stars starting to become visible. “I’ve never seen one of those before! Meteors are so manly!”

“They are?” Bakugou asked, taken aback by the sudden excitement. 

“Of course! They killed all the dinosaurs after all!” 

“Yeah…”

“Oh man, this is so awesome! You’re the best Bakugou!” Kirishima cheered, sitting beside his friend. Their shoulders brushing against each other due to the limited space on the log they sat on. 

“Yeah… whatever,” Bakugou huffed, looking away. 

It took another 30 minutes for it to be dark enough to see the stars clearly. In that time, Bakugou expertly set up his telescope and his DSLR cameras. He had promised his dad that he would take photos of it for him since he couldn’t make it. Kirishima teased him for being a softy, but the blonde retorted that he only did it for the new lens he scored out of the deal. Kirishima didn’t realize the blonde was such a photography nerd. He was learning so much about him on this trip. 

Kirishima thought the sunset earlier was the most marvelous thing he had ever seen, but the starry sky above him was even more stunning. The different shades of purple, pink, green, and blue leftover from the sunset swirled and mixed in a mesmerizing display across the steadily darkening sky. One decorated with millions of brilliant silver twinkling lights. He had never seen so many stars. Having lived in the city all his life and had only ever gone camping during their summer training camp. Though there were no stars to see thanks to the smoky overcast that night.

The redhead just stared in awe at the beautiful scene in front of him. Bakugou sat beside him, occasionally snapping a photo of the sky with his camera set up on a tripod a few feet away, with the remote in his hands. His other camera was rigged to the telescope beside them. The redhead had attempted to ask him questions about how he was able to take photos in the dark, but then Bakugou started talking about the technicalities of cameras and photography. The explanations confusing him even further.   _'Something about long-shutters? Or taking Speed? ISO? In search of what?'_ He could practically smell his brain-frying as it short-circuited.

"You're missing it," Bakugou stated suddenly, nudging Kirishima's shoulder with his to break him out of his trance. The ash-blonde pointed his face toward the sky. Kirishima's eyes following his gaze and immediately lit up with childlike wonder as he saw the first meteors flying across the sky. His famous shark-toothed grin spreading across his face.

Kirishima wasn't sure how long he stared up at the sky before a voice broke into his thoughts. "Hey, Kirishima." The redhead barely had time to look before he heard the familiar click of a camera shutter going off. He blinked his eyes a couple of times before his eyes settled on the camera in Bakugou's hands. Most of the ash-blonde's face was covered by the camera. Though his satisfied grin was hard to miss, even in the darkness. The camera no longer hooked up to the telescope beside them.

He felt his cheeks warming up in embarrassment. "Hey, no fair, Bakugou!" Kirishima protested, pointing at the camera. Another click. He blushed even harder. "Hey! Stop!" Kirishima protested again, making a move for the camera. Only for Bakugou to hold it up, out of his reach.

"What's the matter?" Bakugou teased, a playful smirk on his face. He was always so childish when it was just the two of them. "You camera shy or something?"

"I'm not," Kirishima pouted, "I just don't think it's fair that you can take photos of me, and I can't take photos of you."

"So, you want to take my photo?" Bakugou asked smugly. Trying to embarrass the redhead even further.

"Well, yeah," he said matter of fact. Not sure why Bakugou thought that admitting it would be embarrassing. It's not like anyone else was here. Even if there were, he doubted it would make him embarrassed to admit it. It was manly to acknowledge your feelings, after all. "You're my favorite person, after all. I want lots of pictures with you."

Bakugou's plan backfired. It was his turn to be embarrassed. He turned his head away to hide the blush on his cheeks. Though it was still barely visible in the dim light.

"You suck at taking photos," the ash-blonde mumbled under his breath. His face still facing another direction. Kirishima had to suppress the giggle that threatened to escape his lips at his adorable little Tsundere. "So how about I put one camera on a timer so it can take multiple photos of us as we stargaze?"

Kirishima's eyes brightened. "Sounds good!" Kirishima cheered, grabbing onto one of his arms. The act almost causing Bakugou to drop his $5,000 camera. "Whoops," Kirishima laughed nervously. Ignoring the death glare, Bakugou sent his way.

They spent the rest of the night watching the meteor shower. The camera they set up, continuing to take a photo of them every ten minutes until it ran out of battery. Kirishima enjoyed getting a closer look at the meteors through the telescope but enjoyed it more when he could see the whole sky. That and he enjoyed sneaking glances at Bakugou, who split his time watching with him and taking photos of the shower. It was refreshing to see the hothead looking so calm and focused on something with silent intensity.

Bakugou showed him a few photos he was especially proud of, and they made Kirishaim's jaw drop. They were both staring at the same sky, but Bakugou's photos highlighted the most beautiful parts of it. There wasn't anything Bakugou couldn't do. After much convincing, he finally allowed Kirishima to take a few photos himself, though only after triple-checking to make sure the strap was around him correctly. Kirishima thought his pictures turned out alright, but Bakugou gave him a few tips, and they drastically looked better.

"Did you make a wish?" Bakugou asked as the last meteors crossed the sky. Referencing how the Mountain was locally known as "Wish Mountain." His arms were crossed behind his head as he lay on top of his sleeping bag. Their entirely constructed tent a mere 6 feet away, completely forgotten.

Kirishima lay beside him. His crimson hair tickling Bakugou's face. "Hmmm... I wish we could stay like this forever," he stated truthfully. A sleepy smile on his face.

"You're so corny," Bakugou snorted, but there was a small smile on his face.

This made Kirishima grin even more. "Yeah, I know," he replied sleepily. "What did you wish for?"

Bakugou was silent for a moment. He shifted into a sitting position, ignoring Kirishima's sleepy protests. Without warning, Bakugou leaned over and kissed him. Kirishima was frozen in place for a second but then leaned into it. A few more moments passed before they parted. "This," he stated simply, an awkward smile on his face.

"Now, whose corny?" Kirishima giggled.

"Shut up," Bakugou yawned, settling into a more comfortable position. "Get some sleep, Kiri."

"G'night Bakugou," Kirishima mumbled. Snuggling back into Bakugou's side, before drifting comfortably to sleep next to the person he loved. 

 

“Hey, Shitty-Hair,” a voice whispered impatiently in his ear. His body rocked from side to side as someone shook his shoulder. The motion was gentle at first but steadily became rougher when the redhead didn’t respond.

Kirishima groaned pitifully, rolling over in a feeble attempt to ward off the annoying force trying to wake him up for school. He heard a huff to his left before he felt the warm, comforting blankets around him getting ripped from his grasp. His sleepy groans quickly morphed into agitated growls at the rude intruder for interrupting his peaceful dreams. The ball of sunshine had never been much of a morning person. His close friends described him as a hangry demon first thing in the morning. Many of which, had been a victim to his sharp teeth after they carelessly tried to wake him. The aggravating presence, however, was not impressed. Instead of backing down, they roughly grabbed his face and shoved something into his mouth. Kirishima was startled for a moment before the familiar smell calmed him down enough to absentmindedly start chewing. 

“Mmm… Honey and Oats,” Kirishima mumbled around the granola bar in his mouth. The treat quickly disappearing with each satisfying crunch, while his right hand carelessly rubbing the sleep from his eyes. A childhood habit that never went away, even after injuring himself at the tender age of four. 

“You’re always such a mess in the mornings,” a familiar voice complained above him. “You’re gonna end up taking someone's finger one of these days. And I swear, if you bite my hand again, I will destroy you.”

“That was one time,” Kirishima groaned, finally awake enough to open his eyes. His scarlet eyes blinked the sunlight filtering through the common room's blinds for a few seconds before they fully adjusted. Standing above him was none other than Bakugou. Kirishima couldn’t help but notice that he looked well rested for once. The ash-blonde raised an eyebrow when he caught Kirishima staring at him. The redhead quickly averted his gaze in embarrassment. Instead, focusing on the sleeping forms of their classmates. All of which were still sprawled about the common room from their sleepover the night before. “And Recovery Girl stitched you up just fine.” 

Bakugou was not amused. “Maybe, but having to explain to Aizawa that I was late for class because I had to get fucking  _stitches_ because you tried to eat my hand was completely fucked up, Kiri,” the ash-blonde muttered. He threw another granola bar at him. “You’re lucky he was the one who ordered me to wake you up. Otherwise, I would’ve gotten detention.” 

Kirishima grinned. “See. It all worked out in the end.”

Bakugou rolled his eyes. “Yeah. You’re right,” he agreed sarcastically. “It’s not like we’ve ever had to go to Recovery Girl for any   _other_ embarrassing reasons.”

Kirishima blushed hard. Bakugou wouldn't dare say it aloud with the sleeping bodies of their classmates littered around the room. But he was definitely referencing the time when Kirishima had accidentally bit Bakugou’s tongue during one of their first makeout sessions. They had played it off as a training accident, but Bakugou continued to hold that incident over him. 

“I said I was sorry,” the redhead groaned. “Give it a rest already.”

“Never.”

This time, Kirishima rolled his eyes. It appeared that most of the class was still sound asleep on the various couches, though most cuddled with their friends on the floor under a mess of blankets. Seemed only Momo and Koda were missing, the later probably upstairs feeding his rabbit before school. Iida was snoring across the room, no doubt exhausted after trying to babysit their rowdy class. 

Their class was famous among the school for throwing over the top sleepovers and game nights. Their hijinks were a fun topic, even among the other departments. Unfortunately, that was because some of their hijinks escaped the safety of their class dorm. Like the time Kaminari and Sero tried to tight-walk the distance between the Class-A and Class-B dorms on Sero’s tape. As one would expect, the tape broke halfway across. Sero managed to grab Kaminari before he died, and luckily TetsuTestsu had enough time to activate his quirk before he hit the ground. That stunt made the school paper. 

So no one was surprised when the small sleepover with the squad, plus the trio was soon derailed to a class sleepover in the common room. The squad had dragged the shinobi up to the fourth floor to have a sleepover in Bakugou’s room, despite the ash-blonde’s protests. But as soon as they opened the door to his room to reveal the forgotten feathery charred aftermath from that morning, they collectively decided to hold it on the first floor instead. The terrifying look Bakugou shot him will forever be burned into Kirishima's memory. 

It was for the best that they had the sleepover downstairs. The whole class wanted to make sure the newcomer’s first night in the dorms was a positive experience. They had a Disney movie marathon, played board games, and ate junk food until they all thought they would puke. It was the best. Even little Eri miraculously joined in on the fun halfway through the night. Having successfully sneaked past Aizawa’s room and pleaded with her big brother with the best puppy dog eyes Kirishima had ever seen. The goth boy was putty in her hands, and no one could blame him. Well, maybe Aizawa, when he inevitably finds out. 

The trio seemed to be enjoying themselves. Though at one point, Kyo panicked when he felt something wrap around his arm and immediately flipped the invisible Hagakure onto the ground. She squealed loudly but luckily wasn’t injured, aside from her feelings. Kyo let her go instantly, then angrily told her to get lost by throwing a pillow at her--which she dodged--only for it to hit Bakugou in the back of the head. And that started the biggest pillow fight in Class-A history. 

Kirishima smiled happily when he saw Tohru and Mina cuddled together to his right. Beside them was Uraraka and Asui with little Eri nestled between them. A cute black cat held limply in her grasp. They looked absolutely adorable. He scanned the living room for the twins, but they were nowhere to be seen.   _‘Weird.’_

“They were already gone when I woke up,” Bakugou grumbled, guessing what his friend was thinking. He took a bite of his granola bar before continuing, “Ponytail woke up a little after I did. She woke up Rock Face before she left.”

“That’s weird. I thought for sure the twins would still be asleep,” the redhead mused. Remembering how the twins had basically dropped dead after the pillow fight. It never crossed his mind if twins fell asleep at the same time, but he got his answer to that question regardless. Sero and Shinsou barely catching them before they both face planted on the floor. The class tucked them in on one of the couches in the corner and continued being rowdy for another couple hours before Iida finally made them all go to sleep. The twins hadn’t so much as twitch the entire night.  

“They have Homeroom with us, right? Do they even know where to go?”

“Don’t know. Don’t care,” Bakugou replied with a shrug. “All I know is I’m going out for a run. You coming or what?”

Kirishima felt energized after eating and the first good night's sleep he’d had in a while. “Of course!” the redhead beamed, taking the hand Bakugou held out for him. Though his tone wavered at the end when the ash-blonde pretended to drop him back on his ass. “That’s not funny,” he pouted, but Bakugou only smirked back at him. Sometimes Kirishima hated that dumb, beautiful face of his. 

It didn’t take them long to get ready for their run. Bakugou had retrieved a change of clothes for both of them before waking him. After a quick trip to the locker rooms to change, they were ready to go. Deciding to take their usual route, which consisted of running around the entire length of the gated campus and three laps across the track when they passed it. 

As they ran at a fast, but manageable pace; Bakugou quizzed him on school topics. If Kirishima got three questions right in a row, he was allowed to bore Bakugou with a dumb stunt the squad did or was planning to do soon. The redhead must have improved because he was talking explosive teen’s ear off. 

“So Kaminari said, ‘hold my chocolate milk.,’ and headed straight for Todoroki with his hand covered in electricity. And then--”

“Shitty-Hair,” Bakugou groaned, slowing to a stop. His hand catching the redhead's face to prevent him from pulling ahead of him. 

Kirishima pried the hand from his face. “Hey, I was in the middle of a story!” he protested between pants. “I earned that story.”

“Except I was there for that!” Bakugou panted angrily. His eye twitching in annoyance. “Dunceface wanted to know if Icyhot would let off his Ice or Fire quirk if he was zapped in his sleep. And the answer was neither. The bastard kicked Pikachu so hard he was knocked unconscious for two hours.”

“Huh, I guess you were there for that,” the ball of sunshine chuckled. Scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.“Then why didn’t you stop him?”

“Sometimes, you just have to let Darwinism run its course.”

“Harsh.”

A flash of orange caught Kirishima's attention further up the trail. “Hey, aren’t those the twins?” Kirishima asked, shielding his eyes from the sun to get a better look at the two forms ahead of them. 

Bakugou followed his gaze. “Tsk, I guess we figured out where they’ve been this whole time,” he muttered. His crimson eyes narrowing in an emotion Kirishima couldn’t place. “Come on. We have to go that way to get back to the dorms anyway.”

“R-right,” Kirishima agreed hesitantly, following into step with his friend. 

The shinobi didn’t notice them as they approached. It wasn’t like they were hiding their presence in any way, but as they approached, it became clear they were too busy arguing to pay much attention to their environment.

“Didn’t you learn your lesson yesterday? You should be taking it easy,” Tsubasa cautioned, his voice a little bitter. Nothing like the polite, friendly way he spoke the day before. He was walking a couple of feet behind his brother, trying to get his attention. His brilliant wings sheathed at the moment. He reached a hand out toward his brother.

“I’m fine,” Kyo answered curtly. Shrugging off the hand, his brother tried to place on him. His pace quickened slightly as a result. “If you’re waiting for me to thank you. You can forget it. I didn’t need to be saved like this.” 

Kirishima wanted to find another route back to the dorms. It sounded like these two needed to work something out with one another. The last thing they needed was for two strangers to barge in and ruin everything for them. The redhead nudged his friend's shoulder, trying to steer him down the side path.

Bakugou had other plans. Much to Kirishima’s horror, he proceeded to violently kick a rock in his path. The stone skidded across the ground, before crashing into a nearby metal trashcan with a loud   **_BANG!_ **The unexpected sound made the twins jump, which earned an angry hiss from Kyo when his crimson eyes locked onto them. 

“Tsk serves you right for blocking our way,” Bakugou stated, shouldering his way between them. 

Kirishima followed closely behind him. “U-uh sorry about him,” the redhead apologized for his friend. Bowing respectfully to each of them in turn as he did so. “He’s a little cranky in the morning.”

“Kirishima!” the explosive teen called a distance away.

“I know!” Kirishima called back. Breaking into a run to catch up with Bakugou. He looked over his shoulder and flashed one last smile to the bickering brothers. “We’ll see you later!” 

 

 **_Aizawa P. O. V._    ** 

 

The underground hero was reaching the end of his patience with the troublesome shinobi known as Kyo. Before the bell had even rung, he had seen Kyo twirling a kunai in his hands while he walked through the halls. Either he didn’t notice the concerned looks the other students gave him, or he didn’t give a fuck. Either was equally plausible. Eraser Head was going to get a lecture from Nezu if this behavior continued. 

“Kyo, did I see you with a weapon earlier?” Aizawa questioned impatiently when Kyo approached the classroom with his teammates in tow. 

“That would be against school policy, right?” he stated innocently, without answering the question. Aizawa rolled his eyes. He was too tired for this. “Just get inside,” he ordered, shoving him roughly inside the classroom. Away from curious eyes.

Due to the four new additions to his class, Aizawa added a new desk to each of the four existing rows. He had initially planned to sit the newcomers in the back row, but seeing how the explosive shinobi was proving to be a hazard to everyone around him. Aizawa took this opportunity to switch Kyo’s intended seat behind Sato with Shoji, who was in dire need of a new place as well. The poor boy blocked the view of the peers behind him no matter how low the kind student slouched in his chair. This way, Aizawa could keep an ever-watchful eye on Kyo in the front row. The rest of the newcomers were easy to find seats for. Shinsou was seated behind Uraraka, and Tsubasa was seated behind Todoroki, giving him ample room to accommodate his wings. Tohru was seated behind Momo. Keeping her out of Mineta’s line of sight to avoid incidents like the day before. 

“Now that we’ve gotten that taken care of,” Aizawa began when everyone was settled in their seats, “I know you’re all eager to start your next phase of training in your Heroics and Quirkless classes. You’ll have ample opportunities to prove yourselves later. For the next hour, you’re all going to be focusing on improving your hero costumes for the colder weather,” the underground hero yawns. Ignoring the excited cheer that rang throughout the classroom. 

“Awesome new costumes!” Mina cheered.

“This is so exciting!” Hagakure agreed, angling her body towards Jirou.

“Aw man, but I can’t draw crap,” Kaminari whined to Kirishima.

“Feel free to examine your costumes or head to the Development Studio to get inspiration. Most of you probably know what you want to add, while the newcomers will have to design their costumes from scratch,” he encouraged as he pressed a button on his remote. The walls in the back corner slid away to reveal where their hero costumes are stored. “You have three days to submit the designs detailing the upgrades to your costumes,” he finished, stepping into his sleeping bag. Ready for his daily nap. 

Students started breaking into groups as they bounced ideas off of one another. In the back corner, he saw Uraraka, Jirou, and Bakugou grabbing their current costumes, with Kyo trailing behind them with a sketchbook. Meanwhile, Midoriya, Iida, and Shinsou went outside to talk to the support class. He spotted Tohru getting a closer look at Mina and Asui’s costumes. To his right, he noticed Tsubasa speaking with Shoji and Yaoyoaruzu. The later was busy making an assortment of swatches of different materials for him to compare. Content with their initiative, Aizawa closed his eyes. Willing sleep to waft over him for the rest of the class.

“Sensei, do you have a minute?” the orange-haired teen interrupted. 

 _‘Of course,’_ the teacher thought bitterly. “What do you want now?” he grumbled, his eyes remained closed.

“Well, I basically know what I’m going to do for my costume already, but I was wondering if I could get a closer look at your capture weapon?” Kyo asked apologetically. 

Aizawa cracked an eye open to study his face. There was no trace of mischief or ill-intent reflected in his crimson eyes. Simply curiosity. The teen scratched the back of his head nervously under Aizawa’s scrutinizing gaze. Eavesdropping behind him was Todoroki and Bakugou. Both of which not bothering to pretend otherwise. 

“I won’t have time to teach you how to use it,” the shaggy-haired man finally answered. He reached inside his desk, instead of removing the scarf around his neck. After rummaging inside for a few moments, he pulled a smaller version of the weapon out. “This was supposed to be for Shinsou, but the length was too long for him.”

Kyo’s eyes sparkled with child-like wonder. “Thanks a bunch, sensei!” he beamed, reaching for the weapon. But Aizawa had other plans. He pulled the scarf out of his reach. The shinobi’s expression dropping a bit. 

The Eraser Hero grabbed the metal bin by his desk and held it up for Kyo. “Before I hand this over, please disarm yourself. You can pick your weapons up after class,” he proposed, giving the bin a little shake. 

Kyo looked torn. He obviously wanted to keep up the gag of hiding weapons on himself but also wanted the chance to see a weapon he’d never seen before up close. Eventually, he begrudgingly started filling it with his arsenal. The teen relinquished most of his tools without much difficulty, but he hesitated on the last one. His hands gripping the sheathe protectively. Instead of dumping them in the bin with the others, he offered them to Aizawa.

“Will you keep these safe for me?” he asked, gently placing them in his teacher's hands. 

The sheath was made from black leather with intricate designs carved into it. Curious, Aizawa unsheathed one of them. Instead of the traditional shape, these mismatched kunai were both three-pronged. Understanding washed over Aizawa as he gazed at them. Recognizing them as Kyo’s mothers. The hero carefully sheathed them. He placed it tenderly on top of his desk. In full view of both himself and Kyo when he returned to his seat. 

“Don’t worry, nothing’s going to happen to them,” he assured, handing over the capture weapon replica. Kyo gave him a respectful bow before heading back to the others. His prize held triumphantly above his head.

Aizawa hid a smile behind his scarf. He didn’t want to admit it, but it seemed he was already growing fond of the trio, despite trying to keep his relationship with them strictly business. Perhaps it was because he had a soft spot for children with painful pasts. The faces of Todoroki, Shinsou, and Eri came to mind. He couldn’t deny that he felt a sort of kinship with the trio. They came from a similar background as him, after all. 

The familiar sounds of his students chatting happily helped the Eraser Hero doze off to sleep. His mind remembering the days he thought he was doomed to become something he didn’t want to be. A time before he met a wolf shinobi who taught him that fate was something you decide for yourself.

 

Many people referred to him as an underground hero because he doesn’t like to be in the spotlight. Not much is known about him or his past. Even hero fanboys like Midoriya had trouble figuring out who he was when first meeting him. Only figuring it out when he revealed his goggles and quirk. When questioned, he would say that he didn’t want to be distracted from his work by flashing cameras and pointless interviews. Though that was only one reason.

Eraser Head might have appeared on the hero scene out of nowhere, but the Aizawa name has a proud and terrifying reputation in certain classified circles. Bakugou’s explanation of the shinobi’s role in society on the first day wasn’t wrong by any means. If anything, it was giving them too much credit. He would know it had been a large part of Aizawa’s life until the age of 13.

The Aizawa family founded the “secret” Shinobi school known as Binoshi. It wasn’t something he had made up to serve as a cover for his other-worldly charges. The family was regarded across the country for the prophetic abilities that made them untouchable in battle, though their specialty was in assassination. Once quirks came into the picture, their fame dwindled. The family almost disappeared entirely until the Japanese government approached them with a solution. To serve as the protectors of the country under their command. The shinobi’s sacrifice was always portrayed as a noble and just cause in the history books, but Aizawa knew the truth. The family did it to protect themselves. The country gave them an ultimatum; fight for Japan or perish like villains. It was a simple as that, so they did what they had to to survive. Selling themselves and their training methods in the process.  

Over time, the country’s officials took over the program. Stripping it from the Aizawa family's control, leaving them in charge in name alone. Changing the program to pump out the strongest living weapons imaginable. Preying on the poorer districts to sell their children for the means to survive. Though only if the child managed to complete their training. It was a brutal program, to say the least. Binoshi would start training kids as young as four years old. Their training consisted of martial arts, weaponry skills, combat simulation, infiltration, quirk strengthening, poison tolerance, torture tactics/endurance, and of course, assassination. About 10% of students died before their 10th birthday. If you survived the grueling years of training, you have the opportunity to graduate to become a full-fledged Shinobi at the age of 18. It’s optional, of course, though you refuse at your own risk. 

As a descendant of the founding family. Aizawa was a prodigy and a model student, even to his seniors. Everyone believed he would become the heir to Binoshi. There was only one problem. Aizawa didn’t want to be a shinobi. While he looked and acted like the perfect assassin. At his core, he wanted to use his gifts to help people, not kill. He blatantly refused to follow orders that went against his moral code. He couldn’t be controlled no matter how many times he was punished for disobeying orders. Truly, a cat in terms of personality. Eventually, they left him to his own devices. Assuming he’d come around to their side in time. It’s not like he had anywhere else to go. A truth that constantly played in the back of Aizawa’s mind.

Each year, he watched as more and more children continued to fall beside him. With each passing, Aizawa wondered how much time he had left before he too was snuffed out. It seemed that death was the only way out of the hell hole he found himself in. A truth some felt strongly enough to do themselves before the superiors could do it for them. Time was quickly running out. 

An opportunity to escape that reality presented itself when his family took a business trip to Musutafu, Japan. The Aizawa family was summoned to an urgent meeting with the Prime Minister, other governmental officials, and Pro-Heroes alike to discuss the future protection of Japan. These meetings happened every five years, but it was the first time he had ever been invited to accompany them. Aizawa was there to give a demonstration of his skills to everyone in attendance. Pitted against a Hero-in-training student three years older than him in a mock battle. A political way to highlight the strength of both programs to the general public in a televised event. 

 “Is it really alright for me to wail on a kid?” the hero student laughed nervously. He was easily a foot taller than the scruffy-looking child standing before him. His tone was pretentious as he feigned concern. Aizawa remained silent. His silence, coupled with his indifferent demeanor, unnerved the boy that loomed over him. “Fine. Have it your way.”

The simulation was a degrading experience for the future hero. He wasn’t allowed to strike until he received an order from his superior. An unnecessary ploy to demonstrate that the shinobi Binoshi trained were obedient soldiers who would only attack their targets, even when provoked. Forced to endure hit after hit, until he was finally given the order to neutralize his opponent. 

In the blink of an eye, an angry Aizawa sidestepped the hero student’s sloppy attack. Disappearing from his view. His eyes flashed an intimidating shade of red as he erased his opponent's quirk. When his opponent was shaken by his quirk failing to activate, Aizawa aimed a careful blow to his leg with his elbow. The boy fell to his knees with a pained shriek. Once kneeling, the raven-haired teen captured his head within an unbreakable headlock. The future hero then mimicked the sickening sound of bones cracking in the student's ear, before pushing the terrified boy away from him. The would-be hero was so terrified that he pissed himself. The room shocked silent from the terrifying display of skill. 

Aizawa frowned down at the traumatized teenager, trembling on the ground. While this punk was an incompetent individual, he couldn’t help but envy the lot he received in life. The sorry excuse for a hero was free to pursue a noble line of work, while he was forced to carry on his family's legacy. Heroes protected. Shinobi killed. Disgusted with himself, the underground hero ditched the rest of the party. Slipping effortlessly through the dozen or so Pro-Heroes and Prime Minter’s “highly trained” guards stationed around the Banquet hall. Relishing in the fresh air as he explored the streets. Thankful for the isolation. Content, taking in the sights of civilians, chatting happily with one another. 

Just as fate would have it. He immediately found himself in the middle of a villain attack. The low-level villain taking advantage of the cities strongest heroes away at the summit to pillage the Tatooine Shopping District. He was a goliath looking beast straight out of a fantasy game. Tearing down and destroying structures with his oversized hands. Causing droves of terrified people flee the area in a chaotic stampede. All the while crying out for a hero to save the day. Aizawa, however, was not that hero. 

As a shinobi, he was granted Diplomatic Immunity whenever he stepped foot outside of Binoshi. Governmental officials were unable to interfere or prosecute him for any crimes committed as long as he was acting under his official commander. But he has to be given an order to be able to act. Frustrated, Aizawa continued to stroll through the screaming crowd. Unable to interfere despite having the necessary skills to protect those around him. Occasionally dodging or blocking pieces of debris for people as he went. His fists clenched as he tried to ignore the panicked civilians around him. That’s when he heard a child’s scream ring-out above the chaos. 

While he was too busy trying to tune out the crowd, he failed to notice that the villain had grown bored of looting and had begun attacking people indiscriminately. With a quick scan of the area, he counted at least five bodies lying on the ground completely motionless. Whether they were unconscious or dead was unclear at his current distance. What was clear was that this giant Goliath looking villain was aiming a massive fist at a child no older than six. She cowered on the sidewalk with a stuffed animal clutched desperately in her grasp. 

Before Aizawa even realized it, his body had lunged for the girl without his permission. Barely managing to cradle her protectively against himself and roll away, before a giant fist crashed where they’d been. Dust from the attack stung his eyes, making him blink more than he preferred. Nevertheless, he stared intently into the rising dust, waiting for the villain's next attack. 

“It’s okay. Everything is going to be alright,” the future hero promised absentmindedly to the whimpering bundle in his arms. Trembling hands clung to him fiercely. The stuffed animal was long forgotten. A small smile spread across his face when he felt a slight nod against his chest. 

Something clatters to their right. The sudden sound frightens the girl who starts fighting against Aizawa in her panic. Her terrified mind screaming for her to run. He knew it was a misdirection. That the villain was actually approaching from the opposite direction. But the struggling girl in his arms slowed his reaction time. Out of options, Aizawa pushed the girl to safety before a giant hand pins him painfully to the ground. Effectively knocking the wind out of him. His vision swam, though he was relieved to see that the girl--while scraped up-- was a safe distance away and being led away from a passerby. 

“Huh? What’s this? Looks like we got ourselves a wannabe hero,” the giant sneered above him. Crushing him further into the ground until cracks formed under the weight. The villain enjoying his victim's pain contorted face. “Tell me, hero, was saving that brat worth it?”

Grimy, murderous fingers wrapped around his torso. The hand gave him a hard squeeze before lifting him from the ground. The raven-haired teen immediately attempted to wriggle free, but it was no use. The monster's grip was too tight. 

“Knock that off!” The behemoth warned. Emphasizing his point by shaking him hard. The motion practically giving him whiplash from the villain's monstrous strength. 

“Release him villain!” a voice ordered out of nowhere. Stopping the perpetrator in his tracks. When Aizawa’s vision stopped spinning, he saw a dozen or so police officers surrounding them in full armor. Their guns aimed at the menacing figure.   _‘Great. The most useless branch of crime-fighting,’_ the teen thought exasperated. 

As one would expect, the villain immediately lifted the teenager. Using him as a human shield against the officers. A knife suddenly held at his throat. All the while, Aizawa dangled limply in his grasp. An indifferent expression on his face, though inside he felt humiliated. There he was, totally at the mercy of a low-level villain waiting to be rescued by a team of police officers. Aizawa was utterly stuck. Not only could he not pry himself free, but he also wasn’t even supposed to be there in the first place. He shouldn’t have left the summit, he shouldn’t have intervened, even if doing so saved a life and Aizawa most certainly shouldn’t have picked a fight with a villain since he wasn’t allowed to harm anyone. This whole situation had absolutely nothing to do with him. If he lived, he was going to get punished for acting out his own will again.   _‘This sucks.’_

A dark blur swiftly smacked the monster square in the face. The blow loosening the Villain's hold on Aizawa enough for him to free one of his hands. Taking advantage, the teen pulls a kunai from his belt and stabs the villain’s forearm. He had already been caught breaking the rules, so it made no difference if he continued to break them. The villain cursed in pain as he lost hold of the brat completely. However, before the future hero hits the ground, he was caught by an unknown individual and whisked away from the scene at lightning speed. Leaving the fugitive and cops questioning what just happened. 

“There, you’re safe now,” a friendly accented voice promised. Gently putting the antisocial teenager down on a rooftop a safe distance away. When he looks up, he sees a woman in her early twenties smiling down at him. She had long wavy dark brown hair and silvery-blue eyes. On top of her head were mostly silver wolf ears with black patches sprinkled here and there. She had a matching tail that swayed casually behind her. “Thanks for providing me with an opening. You were amazing!”

Aizawa blushed, looking away from her. Not used to people praising him. Especially when he didn’t follow commands. “Why did you whisk me away? Shouldn’t we be helping them take care of that guy?” he asked in an attempt to change the subject. Talking about himself made him uncomfortable. 

She scratched the back of her head, uneasily. “You know I would, but I would get in a lot of trouble if I tried,” she admitted. Her cheeks turning red in embarrassment.

“What's the problem? You’re a hero, right?”

She chuckled nervously.

Aizawa blinked at her. “Wait. So you’re not a hero? You don’t have a license?” he asked, completely dumbfounded by her stupidity. She nodded sheepishly in response. The competent looking hero he saw a second ago quickly being reduced into that of a scolded child. His eyes twitched in anger. “That’s illegal! And to make matters worse, you just kidnapped a kid! Way to go, idiot!”

“I know,” she agreed glumly. Her tail slumping in correlation with her somber mood. She kept her gaze fixed on the ground for a few minutes before raising them to meet his. Her once intimidating silver-blue eyes were now a kind amber brown. “I never understood why this world is so hung up on rules and regulations when it comes to helping people in need. If I see someone in need of saving, I’m going to save them. Simple as that.”

Aizawa scoffed at that naive answer. “It doesn’t matter how you  _feel._ That’s the law. We all have to abide by them, or everything will be in chaos,” the teen scolded coldly. Repeating the words he had always been berated with every time he acted up. Regardless, he couldn’t help but feel satisfied with himself for saving that little girl earlier. 

“Ha! Your one to talk,” she grinned, pointing a finger in his face. Her grin highlighting her abnormally sharp teeth. Aizawa resisted the urge to step away from her. “You broke the law too. You’re carrying a weapon without a permit. And before you make an excuse, you have to be 18 to get one.”

That was only partly true. Shinobi were allowed to carry whatever weapons they wanted. He decided to keep that information to himself since the truth was more damning. So he turned away from her with a huff.

“That’s why I grabbed you. This way, we both can stay out of trouble. Not a bad plan, right?” she asked, stepping into his field of vision. A mischievous smile on her face. 

Aizawa turned the other way. He refused to praise anything this woman said. Even if that had been his plan had, he found a way to escape. 

“My name is Amaya Hitsuzen, by the way,” she introduced, crouching in front of him with her hand outstretched. 

The future hero studied her hand for a few moments. He wasn’t supposed to talk to anyone, let alone give his real name to a stranger. But hey, he’d already broken a dozen rules that evening. What was one more? “The name’s Shota Aizawa,” he finally answered, shaking her hand awkwardly.

Her face brightened. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Shota.”

He rolled his charcoal eyes at her. She sure was getting cozy. Already calling him by his first name. “I take it you’re some kind of vigilante then? Just the friendly neighborhood wolf girl?”

“What's wrong with that?” Amaya asked, taking a seat on one of the boxes on top of the roof. “It might be because of my quirk, but I'd rather live free than be a prisoner to society's standards. Sounds kind of unfulfilling, right?”

Those words struck Aizawa at his core. Freezing him in place.

Amaya didn’t notice. “I can’t begin to tell you how many people I’ve seen throw away their lives trying to live up to expectations placed on them by others. They continue to change themselves regardless if that's what they truly want or not. Giving up on their freedom, their dreams, and their futures in the process.”

“That’s what I aim to protect by being a so-called ‘  _Vigilante.’_ I don’t want someone to ever feel like they have to become something they're not, myself included.” 

“I-I want that too…” Aizawa whispered, his voice cracking. His heart longing to be free of the role that was decided for him. “I want to be free too. I don’t want to be a shinobi like my family wants me to be.”

 It wasn’t until he was pulled into the woman’s warm embrace that Aizawa realized that he was crying. The experience was completely foreign. He couldn’t remember the last time he cried or even if he ever had before. It wasn’t something Binoshi tolerated. He wiped awkwardly at the tears that flowed freely from his face, though there didn’t appear to be any end in sight. His cries slowly turned into desperate sobs. He found himself clutching her back in dire need of comfort. If their roles were reversed, he would have pulled back. Instead, she pressed him closer. She guided his face into the crook of her neck, shielding him from view. Not that anyone was watching, but the gesture was comforting all the same. Her hand gently stroking his long shaggy hair. 

“It’s okay. You don’t have to be anything you don’t want,” Amaya cooed softly, carefully pulling away from him enough so she could examine his face. Her soft hands brushing the tears from his eyes. She rested her forehead against his in a loving gesture. “So you don’t want to be a Shinobi, huh? What   _do_  you want to be?”

“What I want to be?…” No one had ever asked him what he wanted before. The shinobi apprentice never believed it was possible to escape his family’s hold on him, so he didn’t dare dream of a better future. Terrified that any attempt to breathe life into it would make it vanish for good. But as he crouched there, Aizawa recalled how fulfilled he felt when he saved that little girl. Knowing that she was alive now because of him. How he envied his opponent earlier and believed he could have done a better job in his place.  _‘That’s what I want to do. I want to protect people.’_

“... a hero…” Aizawa finally answered. 

 

Aizawa began to stir from his slumber. Somewhere in between dreams and consciousness. It had almost been 20 years since Aizawa had last seen Amaya. He thought he had taken her lessons to heart, but the moment he started to doubt his ability to choose his own fate, her sons crashed into his life to remind him.   _‘That couldn’t have been a coincidence.’_

 _“There’s no such thing as coincidence. There is only Hitsuzen,”_ That had been something Amaya had stated often he recalled. 

The underground hero wasn’t lying when he said he hoped that the relationships his students have with the trio will someday change how the world viewed shinobi. Even though he hated Binoshi with all of his heart. It had always been one of Aizawa’s goals to reform the system his family had put in place. He hoped that the county would come up with a volunteer system to create an army as they do in the states, instead of recruiting children into the program who came from more impoverished families. He felt it was his responsibility as a descendant of the family that continued to send out human weapons; to find a better system for the country's defense. A system that wasn’t paved with the corpses of children. Hopefully, his students could help change this world for the better one day.

 

“Get out of my face losers!” an annoyed voice yelled, breaking him from his thoughts. Aizawa let out an exasperated sigh. It wouldn’t be homeroom without someone making a scene. The ever tired hero reluctantly cracked an eye open to see if his presence was needed to break up whatever altercation was about to break out. Fully expecting to see either Bakugou or Kyo in the middle of it with their quirks ready to activate with one misplaced comment. He was surprised to see a group of students crowding around the ill-tempered shinobi with their hero costumes in their hands. 

His desk was covered in sheets of paper, colored pencils, and multiple support items belonging to several different students. In his hands was one of Jirou’s boots. He was turning it every which way, before setting it down on his desk. The orange-haired brat then began to render a quick sketch of them. When he was satisfied with the result, he held it up to her for her input. 

“So you want me to put the earphone port on the back instead of the side?” he asked. When Jirou nodded, he continued, “Alright, if this is going to be for sneak attacks. I would add ports to the back, but also keep the ports on the side. This way, you’re not giving away its location when fighting against villains.”

“That’s a great idea!” she said excitedly, before catching herself. 

He smirked at her. “So, you had another weapon idea you wanted me to sketch for you?”

“Hey, no fair! I was next!” The electric user complained. In his hands was a crudely drawn design that looked to be colored in crayon. 

“Psha, no way. You still haven’t paid your deposit,” Kyo argued, kicking his feet on top of his desk, with his sketchbook leaning against his propped up legs. He threw a Cheeze-it up in the air and caught it in his mouth. “You think I work for free? If you don't offer a treat, y’all can take a seat~” he purred, completely proud of himself for his mediocre rhythm.  

“You didn’t charge Bakugou,” the other teen complained, pointing his thumb over his shoulder where the ash-blonde was relaxing in his seat. The explosive hero looked up from where he was busy jotting down additional notes to the Shinobi’s sketch. 

His crimson eyes narrowed in his usual glare, then flipped him off. “That’s because I let him take a look at my costume. Even an idiot has to realize how beneficial inspecting a costume tailored to a quirk similar to your is.” He then turned his fiery gaze on the shinobi. “I think you can agree that I overpaid. This means you owe me one,” the ash-blonde declared. Flashing him a psychotic grin. 

Kyo rolled his eyes. “Sure, whatever, man.”

Mina took this opportunity to steal her friend's spot in line. Roughly shoving the blonde out of the way as she did so. “I’ve got Chocolate Pocky!” she practically screamed, pushing the box in the shinobi’s face. Her hand holding another disaster of a sketch drawn in ink from a pink glitter gel pen. 

“Thanks for the business, Pinky!” he thanked, snatching the box from her. 

“You’re after Jirou. Anyone else want to put down a deposit?” A smug expression plastered on his face as he watched his classmates rifling through their bags in their hurry to be next in line. 

Aizawa glanced at the small stack of papers beside him. His curiosity getting the best of him; he picked one up. The first page detailed Kyo’s submission for his hero costume. The ex-shinobi was impressed with his drawing skills. He didn’t look like the artistic type, but in his hands was a beautiful colored sketch of his proposed costume design from various angles. There were even detailed sketches of support items he wanted to incorporate. 

He quickly glanced through the other papers, and sure enough, there were designs for Tsubasa, Tohru, Kirishima, and Uraraka. All done in the same drawing style. Each one carefully drawn and tailored to the recipient. Written on the sides, were notes that described the preferred size, weight, and material of each item. No wonder everyone was dying to work with him. It was a pleasant surprise. 

Aizawa had hoped the teen would settle down as time went on. But honestly, Kyo--or any of the shinobi--wouldn’t fit into his class if they didn’t have some abnormal, over the top personality. It was just how this class was. Though, it did put his mind at ease that everyone was getting along for the most part. Being accepted by the class would help them all so much in the long run. 

The hero’s eyes caught a glimpse of the sheathed weapons resting on his desk. Nostalgic, he reached for them. He had examined it briefly before, but his time, he took the time to appreciate the craftsmanship. Carved into the leather were numerous swirling designs that caved in on one another. At its center was the outline of a wolf. A reference to their mother’s appearance and her ability to travel worlds. The medium was different, but it was clearly Kyo’s art style. In it, you could easily feel the love he felt for his mother. 

The sentiment put a smile on his face. He wondered if the twins knew exactly how much they took after their mother. Tsubasa looked the most like Amaya, even adopting some of her mannerisms. Meanwhile, Kyo inherited her free-spirited personality and passion. The gentleness and never-ending love Amaya always portrayed lived on in their teammate Tohru. 

 _‘That’s right,’_ Aizawa thought, looking over at the ball of sunshine near the back of the class. She was currently speaking with Uraraka and Kirishima, all of which had cat ears at the moment. Because the twins tended to attract a lot of attention to themselves, the kunoichi tended to blend into the background. ' _Tohru was also raised by the Hitsuzen family after all.’_

Aizawa continued to watch the trio mingle with his class with peaked interest. Tsubasa and Tohru moved from group to group. Slowly building relationships with everyone in the class, building their trust. While Kyo established intimate relationships from his fixed position at his desk. It was subtle, but they were gradually winning over the class.   _‘Their teamwork is something to behold,”_ Aizawa mused.

To be expected. They had depended on each other for years on countless worlds. All of them are playing an essential role within their squad. Tsubasa acted as their guide by finding people in trouble with his premonitions. Kyo serving as their transportation and main offensive power. While Tohru shielded them from danger by healing their injuries and concealing their demonic nature. 

Aizawa had already been made aware of their demonic origins through his time with Amaya. Her quirk was named “Ookami” or “Wolf demon” after all. So when he saw the twin's true forms, he didn’t even bat an eye. Hell, it was tame compared to the majority of this world’s population. The only aspect that had thrown him off was that they appeared to be less demonic than their mother, even though they possessed a higher blood quantum than her. Aizawa had told them that they could both walk around in either form, and no one would take much notice. They’d both seemed self-conscious about it, no doubt remembering a terrible experience in another world. Eventually, only Tsubasa decided to use his form as his quirk. 

That’s where Tohru came in. Because she already possessed incredible transformation abilities that tended to go out of control when she felt emotionally unstable. She served as the perfect camouflage to cover for Kyo’s accidental transformations. Something Aizawa had been informed happens when he loses control of his emotions. The trio was indeed a well-balanced team. Covering each other's weaknesses while urging each other to become stronger. The underground hero looked forward to them teaching his students what being a team meant. 

 

**_Bakugou P. O. V._ **

 

It was about 40 minutes into Homeroom when the class started getting rowdier than Bakugou liked. He’d grown used to the class’s constant chatter, especially with the annoying muttering nerd seated right behind him. Deku’s muttering still aggravated him, but he’d learned to filter it out more or less. Only threatening his life if he heard him muttering about All Might or One For All in public. For the supposed Future Symbol of Peace, the nerd really sucked at keeping his secret. Bakuogu wondered how no one else stumbled onto it besides him.  

“I’m going to need to add more support to my arms and legs if I want to protect my body from the strain of One For All. The doctors said I need to be especially careful of my ligaments, so maybe adding an extra layer of material that excels in shock absorption to accommodate these areas would be for the best. It would have to be a flexible material, or my movements will be too stiff to be effective in battle. Perhaps All Might has some recommendations--”

“You’re doing it again, you damn nerd,” Bakugou growled in warning.  _‘How the hell did I become Deku and All Might’s keeper?’_ The thought causing small sparks to ignite harmlessly in his palm. 

Deku immediately covered his mouth with his scarred hand. “Sorry Kacchan!” he mumbled behind him, before continuing to jot down notes on what he needed for his costume for Kyo's rendition. This time leaving details about his quirk and All Might out of his muttered explanation. 

The Copycat was partially to blame for the class’s annoying behavior. After Kyo pestered Bakugou nonstop to take a closer look at his hero costume, Kyo had rendered a quick sketch for his own costume. After a few moments, he held it up for Bakugou’s approval. The ash-blond instantly hated how stunning it looked. He suddenly felt self-conscious about his drawing, and subtly covered it with his hand. 

“It’s alright, I guess,” Bakugou lied, trying to downplay the teen's talents. All Might knew that this kid didn’t need a stroked ego. However, it was too late. Bakugou’s uncharacteristic compliment had gotten everyone’s attention, and a large group started to gather around them much to Bakugou’s annoyment. The class immediately captivated by Kyo’s depiction.

“Wow, it’s so lifelike,” Kirishima praised with a shark-toothed grin.

“No kidding, I’ve never seen anything like this!”

“Truly a masterpiece, as expected of students invited by UA,” Iida praised, chopping the air as usual.

“That’s amazing, Kyo. I didn’t realize you had an interest in art,” Deku marveled. His finger tracing the detailed sketch of one of Kyo’s support items. 

“It’s just a hobby of mine,” the orange-haired teen admitted a little self-conscious. He took the sketchbook back from the nerd. The ash-blonde raised an eyebrow at his anxiousness. Never would have pegged the hothead as the shy type. 

Tohru smiled beside her teammate. “Kyo’s always been talented in drawing and designing. He even makes all our tools for us~” she praised in her sing-song voice.

The explosive teen tried to hide his embarrassed blush by furiously erasing a part of his sketch before continuing, “I had to have another outlet besides blowing everything up. It’s not like it’s that useful or anything.” 

“I think it could have a lot of uses,” Uraraka encouraged, resting a hand on the shinobi’s shoulder. “Your so skilled; you could probably charge people for commissions.”

“You don’t say,” Kyo mused, a sly smile spreading across his face.  _‘_

 _‘That’s more like it,’_ the ash-blonde muttered to himself with an exaggerated eye roll. Before Bakugou knew it, Kyo had somehow conned the class into paying him for his services. Either with food or a closer look at support items that interested him. Not that he could blame them for wanting his help. The class was full of aspiring heroes, not artists. Something the Support team complained about often when trying to decipher what they meant by the lackluster drawings they usually sent in. After observing him work with a couple of the extras, Bakugou couldn’t deny anymore that the renderings he provided were impressive. Not only did he draw them wearing their newly altered costumes; he also brainstormed new equipment ideas with the person he was working with. Clearly knowledgeable of mechanics and their battle implications. 

The Copycat’s competence was the only reason Bakugou took him up on his offer to sketch a design for him. “You can use the privilege of looking at my costume as payment you damn Shinobi,” the ash-blonde muttered as he modeled for Kyo with his mask on. 

“Whatever ya say, Hero.”

Bakugou was pleased with the results. The design not only looked awesome but would help him out tremendously during the winter months when his quirk was at its weakest. He spent the rest of the class writing notes for the support team about each aspect of his costume. Though he had to erase the first sentence, Kyo had attempted to write. Appalled when he discovered Kyo had the worst handwriting he’d ever seen--even counting Kaminari. He didn’t understand how an artist could have terrible handwriting, but the dumbass found a way.

“Aren’t you done with my design yet?” Kaminari whined for the millionth time, still posed in his trademark attack stance unnecessarily. “This is taking forever.”

“It would go a lot faster if I could concentrate,” Kyo growled under his breath. He erased angrily at his drawing for the twentieth time. Adding to the dark smudges that already littered the page. 

“For fuck's sake, will you both shut the fuck up!” Bakugou threatened, his eyes shooting murderous intent at the both of them. Their bickering had made him lose his train of thought. Not something he wanted to do when detailing the delicate levels of nitroglycerin his sweat produced to the support company. When he felt the comforting weight of Kirishima’s hand on his shoulder, he forced himself to take a deep breath. Bakugou knew it wasn’t their fault. Kaminari had always been extra bitchy in the mornings when his quirk was fully charged. The abundance of electricity coursing through his body made it difficult for him to focus on specific tasks. And forget trying to keep him still for any significant amount of time. Bakugou could already see the blondes hair stand a little straighter from the extra stored electricity. 

“Jeez, forget it!” Kyo yelled, throwing his ruined sketch into the air. With a snap of his fingers, the drawing detonated in a small explosion. The piece of paper instantly catching fire, then crumbling to dust. Right in front of a crestfallen Kaminari. 

“That was so cruel,” Kaminari cried, hopelessly trying to piece together what pieces survived the blast.

“Kyo, I realize you are new and that you might not have brought up to speed on UA policies, but as you might expect, explosions are not to be detonated in the classroom.”

Everyone’s eyes glanced at the numerous scorch marks that were permanently burned around the room from Bakugou’s temper. The ash-blonde’s eye twitched in barely contained rage when the shinobi pointed to the scorch marks under his desk. “Yeah, I’ll keep that in mind.” That response, unfortunately, triggered Iida to start monologuing about the correct behavior students and guests should exhibit when on school grounds. 

“Iida is right,” Ponytail interjected when she noticed everyone was ignoring the Class President. She stepped forward from where she had been monitoring the situation with Tsubasa and Jirou. She crossed her arms across her chest before she continued, “This is a school for heroes. As such, we should strive to act like them, not  _demons._ ” 

The creation hero had replaced the triggering word "villains," with what she thought was a suitable replacement. Words like ‘villain’ and ‘criminal’ had negative connotations attached to them, so it wasn’t a label to be thrown around so casually. However, words like ‘devil,’ ‘demon,’ or ‘beast’ were acceptable replacements. All of which were popular labels to describe Bakugou by his classmates. The words no longer carried the same negative connotations that they had before quirks surfaced. Even still, Bakugou didn’t miss the way the comment made the twins flinch.

Anger flared in explosive shinobi’s eyes. “Well, I’m not a hero, so get off my case,” he warned coldly. He had walked forward, as well. Only stopping when he stood directly in front of the Vice-president. Kyo had to point his chin up a smidgen to look her in the eyes since she was taller, but the intensity of his gaze forced her to take a step back. 

“Y-you’d rather be a demon?” she asked a little shaken. It was evident to Bakugou that she didn’t mean to offend Kyo. She was just a privileged rich girl with a pretentious vocabulary. He could see why the shinobi might take offense since her vocabulary often angered him as well. Even so, Kyo’s reaction seemed a bit much, even by Bakugou’s standards. 

“Maybe, I do. What’s wrong with that?” Kyo challenged. His sharp teeth peeking through the gap between his lips.  

Bakugou didn’t understand why everyone was so moody today, and frankly, he didn’t care. He was preparing to yell at everyone to shut the fuck up when he smelled the familiar scent of caramel. Puzzled, he glanced down at his palms. They had suddenly started accumulating more sweat.

“Ouch,” Kirishima whined to his right. Startled, Bakugou looked up in time to see the redhead retract the arm he had been resting on Kaminari’s shoulder. Traces of the discharged electricity still seen sparkling off his arm. Kaminari offered a quiet apology. His golden eyes were slightly panicked. 

It was then that Bakugou noticed that the temperature in the room was steadily rising. The abrupt change in the atmosphere threatening to set off the already overcharged electrical pulses coming off of Kaminari or detonate Bakugou’s quirk with a single spark.   _‘Detonate…that’s right.’_ he’d almost forgotten. Bakugou recognized this sensation from the day before. He’d felt the temperature rise several times when Kyo held back his quirk. '  _Shit. If he sets it off now, we’re screwed,’_ he thought, positioning himself to intervene if he needed to. 

“Hey Kyo, check this out~” The kunoichi quickly chimed in. Expertly stepping in between the opposing teens with her usual carefree demeanor. She waved a taiyaki from one of the hallway vending machines under her teammate's nose. “Can you believe they make dessert taiyaki now? Do you want a bite?~” 

“Yeah, sure,” he mumbled, taking the snack from his teammate's hands. The room's temperature gradually returning to normal as he stomped back to his seat. The class released a collective sigh, while Bakugou slowly relaxing out of his stance. 

“Thank you for the assist Tohru,” Yaoyorozu smiled.

Tohru’s expression fell slightly. “I didn’t do it for you~” she admitted. Her expression was unreadable. “I wanted to keep him out of trouble. To be honest, I didn’t appreciate what you said either~” her usual cheerful eyes suddenly off-putting.

“That’s enough,” Aizawa ordered, unzipping himself from his bright yellow sleeping bag. His movements were slightly stiff from napping on the hard ground. He tossed the sleeping bag into a corner to await his next nap. Taking a moment to comb his fingers through his messy hair before continuing, “Since you’ve got the energy to spare, go get dressed in either your hero costumes or P.E. clothes and meet me at Gym Gamma.”

“Yes, Sir!” the class shouted in unison.

It didn’t take long for the class to regroup at the Gym Gamma. Most had already been half-dressed to model for Kyo’s renderings. Bakugou killed some time stretching as he waited for Aizawa to start the lesson. Occasionally wiping sweat from his brow. The gym was warmer than he remembered. His crimson eyes scanned the large, enclosed space. He vaguely remembered that this place was created by Cementoss as a safe place for students to develop new techniques like their ultimate moves. 

 _‘If we’re meeting here, then that means their anticipating a high amount of structural damage,’_ he theorized. His eyes scanned the mostly barren space. Everything was made of cement. Except for the reinforced windows and the green and orange tiles protruding from the wall thirty feet up. 

“What do you think we’re doing?” Kirishima asked, breaking him out of his thoughts. 

“Probably some sort of sparring match. Maybe breaking into teams?” Bakugou offered. He thought he was getting the hang of how this school operated, but this semester threw all his preconceptions out the window. 

A flash of orange caught his attention. Across the room, he sees Kyo mingling with the class. Engaging in friendly chit-chat, sometimes throwing an arm around a classmate or high-fiving someone before moving onto another group of students. The teen had always been a social butterfly, but his actions seemed a little forced to Bakugou. He shrugged it off when he saw his teacher enter the room with Cementoss, Midnight, and a deflated All Might. His crimson eyes averted his gaze when he saw his favorite hero’s eyes brighten after seeing Deku.

“Settle down class,” Aizawa ordered in a deadpan tone. “Instead of focusing on something new for your first Adaptability activity, we’re going to begin by strengthening your overall teamwork.”

Puzzled murmuring broke out among the class. “But Sensei, don’t we already work well with one another?” Pink cheeks questioned. She looked around the class for support. Earning nods and murmurs of agreement. “We’ve been through so much together this year. It’s weird to imagine that cooperation is something we still need to work on.”

“It’s true that you’ve all grown to trust and rely on one another this year, thanks to all the hardships you have survived together,” Aizawa admitted, adjusting the capture weapon on his shoulders. His eyes scanned each student in turn when he continued, “But when compared to groups that have worked together for years, your cooperation is still lacking. Just because it’s decent, doesn’t mean it’s perfect. As UA students, you should strive to continue to push ourselves to new heights.”

“These skills will come in handy when you become Pro-Heroes and have to work with rival hero agencies,” All might explained. He quickly glanced at a notecard before continuing, “You’ll have to quickly establish specific roles within your group. Even the slightest hesitation or bickering could be your downfall.”

“Kyo, Tsubasa, and Tohru,” Midnight called beside Aizawa. “Please step forward.” 

The trio obeyed. Slowly weaving their way through the class. Kyo patting people’s shoulders as he went. “Take the shinobi, for example. They’ve known and worked with one another since they were four-years-old,” Midnight continued, motioning to the three students standing at attention beside the teachers. 

“That’s 12 years to understand someone’s fighting style, mannerisms and establish their specific roles within the group,” Aizawa summarized. His eyes zeroed in on Bakugou for a moment before continuing. “Bakugou and Midoriya have also known each other that long. However, … their teamwork is anything but desirable or efficient.” The ash-blondes eye twitches angrily at the snide comment, but he holds his tongue. 

“As you can see, you all have a long way to go. We don’t expect you to suddenly work together like you’ve done it your whole lives, but this exercise is designed to demonstrate what your cooperation lacks as a class,” the underground hero finished with a yawn. 

“So what will we be doing?” asked the frog. 

“I’m glad you asked sweetie,” Midnight-sensei praised. The R-rated Hero pulled a white headband from out of thin air and tied it around Tohru’s head. “You’ll all be working together to retrieve this headband from this adorable girl’s head.”

“Wait, the whole class is ganging up on one girl?” Tail asked apprehensively. His tail slouching.

“This is the best day ever!” the annoying grape exclaimed. Only to be attacked by Jirou’s earphone jacks.

 _‘What’s the catch?’_ Bakugou thought. His scrutinizing gaze fixed on Aizawa. 

“In this activity, you pass or fail as a class. You will have 30 minutes to coordinate your attacks with each other to retrieve Tohru’s headband,” Aizawa explained, taking a step forward. “However, she will not be your only opponent. The twins will be acting as her bodyguards.” 

Crimson eyes moved from the Aizawa to the three shinobi. Bakugou believed he had a good handle on Kyo’s fighting style after fighting him himself. It was the other two that he was unsure about. He’d heard a little bit about Tohru’s fighting style from Kirishima, but he tended to keep crucial details out of his retellings. The winged shinobi was a complete mystery, He’d have to depend on his limited knowledge of flying quirks and his own experiences maneuvering in the air to help predict his movements. 

An evil smile spread across Midnight's lips. “Let’s start the new semester off with a _bang,_ shall we? Everyone be ready to start when the bell sounds,” she announced, retreating to where the rest of the teachers were waiting on the sidelines. 

Bakugou settled into his usual crouch. His crimson eyes locked on Kyo. The orange-haired shinobi was crouched protectively in front of the kunoichi. There was a chaotic grin on his face as he made eye contact with everyone. His smile widened when he met Bakugou’s gaze. The shinobi then wiped the sweat from his brow, winking at Bakugou as he did so. 

The ash-blonde suddenly recalled how Kyo had been extra friendly before class. How he had been touching people as he talked with them, how Kyo had zig-zagged between groups, or how he patted people's shoulders before standing in front of the class. Bakugou had noticed the building was abnormally warm but assumed there was something wrong with the ventilation system.  _‘What did Midnight just say?’_

**“Let’s start the new semester off with a _bang,_ shall we?...”  **

“Shit…” Bakugou cursed under his breath as the bell sounded for the start of the activity. The explosive hero immediately launched into the air. “Get off the ground, you idiots!” he yelled over his shoulder. 

“Too late!” Kyo roared, both of his hands already poised to release his quirk. The sound of both hands snapping was instantly drowned out by several explosions and the terrified wails of his classmates. The ground cracked under their feet, sending debris and smoke flying in every direction. Bakugou watched the chaos unfold below him from his makeshift perch on top of the narrow row of orange tiles that protruded off of the walls. 

 “Fuck.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I managed to get this chapter out faster than I expected. The next chapter should also come out relatively quickly since it picks up right where this one ends. I had planed for this fight to take place in this chapter, but it was getting too long. This means that the next chapter with have two class fights in it! The teamwork activity and the first quirkless one. 
> 
> I wanted to take this opportunity to say that this is a story will continue to have multiple pov's, but will eventually focus on Bakugou's. 
> 
> I hope you're enjoying the Story so far!


	6. A Lesson In Teamwork

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bakugou struggles to showcase his leadership skills to the class. Meanwhile, Kyo wonders how he's going to convince the class of the importance of the quirkless training.

 

 

 

_“Shit…” Bakugou cursed under his breath as the bell sounded for the start of the activity. The explosive hero immediately launched into the air. “Get off the ground, you idiots!” he yelled over his shoulder._

 

_“Too late!” Kyo roared, both of his hands already poised to release his quirk. The sound of both hands snapping was instantly drowned out by several explosions and terrified wails. The ground cracked under their feet, sending debris and smoke flying in every direction. Bakugou watched the chaos unfold below him from his makeshift perch on top of the narrow row of orange tiles that protruded off of the walls._

 

**_Bakugou P. O. V._ **

 

**_BOOM!...BOOM!...BOOM!!!_ **

 

The deafening sounds of explosions mixed with the terrified wails of class 1-A reverberated off the violently shaking walls of Gym Gamma. It was only 15 seconds into the match, and already the cement floor had long deep fissures stretching every which way as if an earthquake had ravaged the area. Each explosion generating enough force to send clouds of dust and pieces of debris flying into the air. The thick smog impairing the class’s vision and further splitting them up to create easier targets for their opponents to pick off. Meanwhile, the trio moved quickly through the smokescreen attacking opponents left and right. An embarrassing feat considering the Shinobi was supposed to be on the defensive. 

Kyo’s opening move had knocked half the class prone with one attack, while the other half was thrown into the air a second later when the ground erupted under their feet. After that, the shinobi unleashed a devastating series of controlled explosions, alternating between attacking a few students simultaneously to targeting a specific section of the floor. Each barrage announced with a corresponding snap of his fingers. It was a bitter pill to swallow when they realized that the explosions targeting people were nowhere near as strong as the ones tearing up the ground. Only strong enough to send them crashing to the floor with minimal burns and the bruised egos that came with being treated with kid gloves.

Bakugou watched the mayhem unfold below him from his relatively safe perch on top of the orange railing. Taking a page out of Deku’s notebook, by examining the enemy before attacking. His crimson eyes straining to differentiate friend from foe from the shadows and random flashes of light moving within the smoke.

“Shit, these extras are getting wrecked,” he muttered to himself, catching a glimpse of Ribbons incapacitating Ojiro and Sato with a simple hand chop to the neck through a break in the smog. 

Impatient, the ash-blonde let go of the railing. Using his quirk to fly over the shifting mass of smoke. However, as he approached, he began to feel strong air currents push against him. It took more effort than he would like to admit to keep himself afloat. The air trying its best to drag him down into the swirling dome below him. Pieces of debris mixed in with the wind already starting to tear at his hero costume. 

Bakugou’s crimson eyes widened slightly in understanding. The impenetrable wind barrier not only kept the rest of the class trapped but it also prevented the smoke from Kyo’s explosions from dispersing. Creating a continuously thickening smokescreen as time passed. The shinobi’s ideal fighting environment if Bakugou’s match yesterday was anything to go by. 

He continued to fight the strong air currents as he flew around the dome. Testing it for weaknesses by trying to disrupt the flow with his quirk, but also using himself as bait to draw the wind user out from his hiding place. “Tsk looks like I won’t be able to break through it unscathed. At least not without killing a few extras in the process,” Bakugou muttered in annoyance. His body fighting the urge to wince when a piece of shrapnel grazed his cheek. A line of blood already trickling from the wound. 

A sudden wall of wind slammed into him. The force sending him flying backward until he was able to slow his momentum down with his quirk. He flipped off the spiraling wind dome before retreating to the safety of the railing to gather his thoughts. 

The explosive hero's plan to lure Tsubasa out in the open had failed. Feathers was still nowhere to be seen. His quirk, no doubt, kept him well hidden within the ever-shifting smoke. The only traces of him being the gusts of wind that occasionally blocked attacks for his comrades or the smoke shifting to hide them from view.  _‘I had hoped to take that Copycat out first, but this bird wannabe’s air-manipulation quirk is our biggest problem right now,’_  The ash-blonde thought, choking back the cough that tickled the back of his throat due to the extremely dusty air. Even at this height, the grittiness of the air was making it difficult to breathe. If they wanted to turn the tides of this battle, they needed to do something about this harsh air and clear their field of vision. 

As if reading his thoughts, Bakugou senses a familiar surge of power below him. His eyes immediately zone in on the high energy source to see green flashes of electricity peaking through the dense fog. Bakugou’s teeth grind together when he hears that all too familiar voice shout out, “Full Cowling: Shoot Style!” A second later, a large gust of wind blasts half of the smoke from the area. The power of One For All too much for Tsubasa’s quirk to compete with. The force of Deku’s attack even breaking some of the windows in the process. 

“Watch your aim, nerd!” Bakugou shouted, his body dangling awkwardly from his one-handed grip on a hanging ceiling light. Multiple scratches and scrapes covered his body from the shards of broken glass created from Deku’s attack since he had been perched right next to the windows. Bakugou’s eye twitched angrily. Like everything the nerd did, Bakugou couldn't help but feel personally targeted by that attack. Deku might always claim to revere him, but instances like this couldn’t have been an accident. Unless Deku actually was an idiot, which would anger Bakugou even more if that was the truth. ‘Future Symbol of Peace, my ass.’

“Sorry, Kacchan!” Deku fretted, his face contorting into numerous nervous expressions. Each one was more aggravating than the last. 

“Just attack them already!” Bakugou ordered, swinging his body with his one-handed grip on the light and launching himself into the fray below him. 

The nerd’s attack wasn’t a complete waste. Besides clearing the majority of smoke from their area, it removed Kyo and Tohru from their smokescreen. Both of them were now in cat forms and vulnerable as their sensitive eyes adjusted to the sudden change in light. Momentarily leveling the playing field for their classmates. Deku nods in understanding and immediately moves in to attack the closest person, which happened to be Kyo. However, he’s instantly knocked off balance from a concentrated explosion aimed at his shoulder from where Kyo had leaned on him during homeroom. 

Instead of helping him, Bakugou focuses his attention on Tohru. Determined to win this exercise for his class. “You’ll give me that headband if you know what’s good for you, Ribbons. I’m not going to hold back just because you’re a girl,” Bakugou declared, as he closed in on the kunoichi.  

“I wouldn’t want you too,” she replies nervously. Her body instantly falling into a defensive stance with her hands held out in front of her. Her brown cat ears lying flat against her head, while her body trembles slightly in anticipation. Though her sapphire eyes stay determined as she stares down the beast of class 1-A. 

“It’s your funeral,” he retorted, aiming an explosive swing at her once she was in range. 

In one fluid movement, she dodges his swing, grabs hold of his wrist and slams her elbow into his ribs. His breath leaving his lungs with an audible WHOOSH! Even light-headed as he was, Bakugou noticed that she was twisting his wrist while pulling him forward. Preparing to throw him over her shoulder and smash him to the ground. A move identical to the once Deku used against him during their first class together. Tapping into his anger and embarrassment, Bakugou backtracked. Using his superior weight and strength to fall in the opposite direction. A counter move he prepared in case Deku ever tried to use that cheap move against him ever again. This unexpected change in momentum slammed her into the ground, with him landing heavily on top of her instead. A satisfying gasp escaping her lips when he pinned her hands to her sides while he straddled her body. 

Without hesitating, Bakugou moved to grab the headband from her head before her comrades could come to her aid. Just when he felt his fingertips brush against the silky material, he felt something strong wrap around his throat. Memories of Dabi’s fingers latching themselves on the back of his neck flashed through his mind as he felt himself being pulled backward. ‘ _Checkmate…’_  Dabi’s voice rang clearly in his ears. Panicking, Bakugou forgot about the victory at his fingertips and launched himself back into the air. A knee-jerk response that would’ve strangled him, if it hadn’t have been for the hold around his neck releasing itself the second he abandoned the pinned girl underneath him. 

Bakugou returned to the safety of his previous perch on top of the hanging lights. His breathing fast and irregular. The adrenaline in his body making his quirk work in overdrive to ward off the made-up threat. To compose himself, Bakugou bit the inside of his mouth. Relishing in the pain that grounded him to reality. He refused to have a panic attack here in front of everyone. He would never live it down. Bakugou was thankful that no one could see how shaken up he was from this height.

After a few moments, the ash-blonde willed himself to look back at Tohru to confirm that the villain he imagined wasn’t there. He wasn’t, of course. In his place was a confused looking kunoichi with a long monkey tail.  _‘I was triggered by a fucking tail,’_  the ash-blonde thought to himself. His head hanging in shame. 

“Whatever. I’ll deal with that later,” Bakugou muttered to himself. Shoving his personal problems to the back of his mind to concentrate on the battle in front of him. 

A flash of white attaches itself to the hanging light next to Bakugou. A few seconds later, the familiar form of Sero lands on top of it. “Sup Blasty,” he greeted with the usual smug look plastered on his face. “I can’t believe you lost to a girl!” he laughed.

Without even looking, Bakugou landed an explosive swing at the hanging light beside him, causing it to crash to the floor. The light fixture just barely missing Iida, who, after recovering from his shock, began to yell at them, though they were too far up to hear his words. Sero, however, expected that response from Bakugou and had already attached his tape to the light fixture Bakugou was resting on to avoid getting attacked again. 

“Uncalled for,” Sero muttered, swaying a few feet below the ash-blonde as he dangled in the air precariously. With his free arm, he began to rummage through one of the pockets of his hero costume. “I’ve got a present for you, courtesy of Momo.”

Bakugou raised an eyebrow as Sero tossed him a small case. He looked at it suspiciously. Not fully trusting his idiotic friends to not try to prank him during a class activity. He opened it regardless. Fully committing to blowing Sero out of the sky if it was some kind of joke. Inside he found a communication device. The same model as the ones they used in their first-ever team exercise. 

“Don’t tell me she expects me to listen to 20 people at once with this?” he complained bitterly but was already taking the device out of the case.

Tapearms shakes his head. “She’s only made a few communication devices. The rest of the class are getting headphones that pick up the signals,” Sero explained, pulling himself on to the light on the other side of Bakugou. He pointed to his ear to show that he was already listening to their classmates' conversation. “She said you’ll be very valuable since you’ve come the closest to defeating two of their members and can watch their movements from the air.”

“Yeah, no shit,” Bakugou agreed. Iida’s volume increased below them, but they still couldn’t make out his words. Bakugou wasn’t looking forward to having him yell straight in his ears. He contemplated throwing the device at Iida. With his hair still bright purple, there was no way he could miss.

Tapearms follows his friend's gaze and shakes his head. “Dude, there’s no way you’ll make that. Not even you can account for the interference of random explosions,”

“Watch me.”

Sero rolled his eyes. “Are you going to help out or what?”

“What do you think?” The ash-blonde yelled, throwing the case down below with deadly accuracy. Not only hitting their class president but also hitting Deku, who was standing right beside him. With a satisfied smirk, Bakugou placed the communication device firmly in his ear.  

 **“Oww, Kacchan…”**  the nerd’s whine echoed over the wavelength.

 **“Shut up, you’ve dealt with worse,”**  Bakugou berated harshly. He crossed his arms. His usual stance to brace himself against the storm of idiotic ideas he knew was coming his way.  **“So, what do you losers want?”**

 **“Intel,”**  Ponytail’s voice explained a little winded. She was busy fighting with Tohru, who’s Transformation quirk was giving her Creation quirk a run for its money. The kunoichi was fixated on Ponytail after their little dispute last period. She continually transformed whatever Momo created into something completely useless, like flowers or rocks. Thus, she was in no mood to beat around the bush. And Bakugou could respect that. “ **You have had a clearer view of their movements than anyone else here and have engaged in combat with two of the three members.”**  

 **“Is there any kind of weaknesses you’ve noticed with their quirks or fighting styles?”** Deku added.

Before Bakugou had the chance to insult the nerd, another voice cut in.  **“Don’t forget this is a teamwork activity. Let’s win this as a class!”**  Kirishima chirped. His voice already quelling most of Bakugou’s anger and frustrations.  **“Who is our biggest threat?”**  Kirishima prompted gently. The red-heads way of getting Bakugou to talk that made him feel like it was just the two of them. That it was just another conversation, they shared between classes or during their study sessions.  

Bakugou fought the smile that threatened to show on his face.  _‘Damn, he sure gets me.’_  he thought to himself.  _‘Guess I have no choice but to work with these extras,’_

The ash-blonde took a deep breath before answering.  **“Now that we have a way to deal with Feathers’ wind, Carrot Top is our biggest threat. He’s got you losers running around like a bunch of useless sidekicks,”**  he sneered over the mic. Some angry muffled voices could be heard in the background from the rest of his classmates that didn’t have actual communication devices.

“Classy dude,” Sero sighed beside him though Bakugou ignored him. 

 **“Any information you could provide to help deal with him**?” Ponytail asked, her voice slightly exasperated. No doubt struggling to hold back her urge to scold him for his insolence or whatever.  

Bakugou looked down at where Kyo was fighting with Kirishima and Iida.  **“Before this fight, I had assumed that Carrots could only set one explosion off at a time. However, on closer inspection, it looks like an ultimate move of his is too detonate multiple targets if they are within a certain distance to one another,”** Bakugou relayed to his classmates. Taking deep breaths now and then to control his anger at working with a bunch of amateurs.  **“I haven’t figured out what the drawbacks are to his quirk yet. Other than you can tell when he’s about to detonate a large explosion or is currently charging numerous explosions by the rise in temperature. Though that doesn’t help you guess exactly where the explosion will detonate.”**

 **“What about a time limit?”**  Ponytail asked the group.  **“It’s obvious that Kyo has to touch something to make it explode. But what’s his time frame to do so? Or is it a quantity limit?”**

 **“It would have to be some sort of time limit,”**  Deku theorized after a brief pause. There was some undecipherable rambling before he added in a clearer voice,  **“If he had some sort of quantity limit, I don’t think he would unleash so many large explosions at the beginning of the match.”**

 **“If it’s a time limit, then it’s probably a little less than an hour,”**  Bakugou theorized in a neutral tone. He would never admit it, but it was nice to go over strategies with other people. It felt like the talks he had with All Might and Deku about One For All. But without all the guilt and self-deprecating thoughts. Deku was still here, so that still sucked a bit.  **“He was super friendly before class to make bombs, but I’ve noticed him detonating people he encountered towards the end of homeroom as well.”**

 **“Since when have you been so helpful?”**  Icyhot suddenly cut in with his usual neutral tone. He hadn’t been much of a player this fight. Unsure what to focus on since he didn’t want to risk hurting any of his classmates.  **“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so docile.”**

 **“Screw you, Icyhot! I can be helpful if I wanna be!”**  Bakugou yelled, making everyone’s mic peak painfully **. “Why don’t you make yourself useful and go attack that quirk Copycat.”**

 **“Great idea Kacchan. A small group of us will attack Kyo to see if we can discover any other weaknesses with his quirk,”**  Deku announced, motioning to a few people close by.  **“Kacchan, see if you notice anything from your higher vantage point.”**

 **“Don’t give me orders, you damn nerd!”**  Bakugou ordered harshly. Launching himself off of his pedestal to pretend to attack another target. His crimson eyes setting their sights on Tohru to give Ponytail a much-needed break. They couldn’t afford to have her exhaust her quirk completely. In a more controlled tone, he added,  **“Attack him fast and hard. Make him use his quirk. And If I see an opening, you better get out of the way because I’ll be hitting him with everything I’ve got,”**  Bakugou warned in a voice dripping with bloodlust. 

As he closed in on the kunoichi, Bakugou couldn’t help but think that there was something off about Kyo’s fighting. He’d been using his quirk nonstop, but Bakugou hadn’t uncovered the weakness to his quirk yet. It didn’t seem to have the same drawbacks Bakugou’s quirk had despite being similar.  _‘Every quirk has a weakness. A vulnerability or function that someone else can exploit.’_  It was a truth that Aizawa had drilled into their brains with each lesson. Kyo would be no exception.

While Deku began his assault on Kyo with three other classmates. The ash-blonde pretended to be focused on chasing after Tohru. Bombarding her with vicious taunts and attacking her with unrelenting explosions from the air. Hoping to fool his opponents by playing off of his usual need to win by himself and his tendency to relentlessly attack those insult him in any way. All the while, keeping Deku’s fight within his line of sight. 

This proceeded for a couple of minutes without much luck. Bakugou was starting to get bored and began to focus more on the opponent in front of him. He was aiming an explosive swing at Tohru’s back when three other simultaneous explosions stole his attention. Bakugou manages to look back at Deku’s fight just in time to see Kyo takedown Frog, Round Face, and Icyhot with a single snap. Leaving only the future number one hero--who had already been sent to the ground earlier--unaffected by the shinobi’s quirk. Deku’s plan to counter Kyo’s raw power with sheer numbers failing miserably. At least that’s what Bakugou thought. 

His crimson eyes narrowed slightly in concentration. Instead of countering with a close-range explosion from the ground, Kyo was lowering himself in a defensive position. Resorting to using physical blocks for the first time during this fight by raising his arms to guard against Deku’s new shoot style. 

 _‘Did he reach some kind of limit?’_  Bakugou wondered absentmindedly. Slowly backing off of his current opponent to get a better look at the developing situation from above. Kirishima and Mina moving in to keep Ribbons occupied for him.  _‘Maybe he has to rest longer in between volleys when he detonates multiple targets at once?’_  

A dark shadow falls over Deku a moment before he’s sent flying with a strong kick. The nerd crashing into Icyhot, who had just managed to get back onto his feet. Long wings slowly unfold to their full length to reveal Tsubasa still holding his kicking stance defensively in front of his brother. His eyes glowing an intimidating silverish blue. Everyone too shocked by the suddenness of the attack to move forward. 

One of Carrot Top's cat ears flicks before he rolls his eyes at his brother. He then carefully steps around one of his wings. His hand mimicking a petting gesture without actually touching the delicate appendage.  _‘A precaution, maybe?’_  Bakugou wondered, shaking himself out of his trance.

“You better take to the sky,” Kyo warned his brother, slowly crouching down until he’s on all fours. Kicking off his shoes to better utilize his quirk. Steam already rising from where his hands and feet touched the ground. Preparing to launch himself forward with the help of his quirk. “It’s about to get pretty hectic down here,”

 **“Heads up Idiots! We need to immobilize Carrots now!”**  Bakugou ordered, launching himself at the explosive shinobi. There was only one problem. When he shouted his order to his classmates. Three other voices had suddenly rung out through the earpiece he had forgotten he was still wearing. Each one contradicting the commands of the others. One of which literally stopped Bakugou in his tracks as a giant Iceberg blocked his path.  

 **“We need to keep our distance!”**  Icyhot declared as he created a wall of ice to keep Kyo away from the rest of the class. 

  **“Everyone, we need to regroup!”**  Deku called loudly.

 **“Class spread out! We can’t get caught up in the same explosions!”**  Four eyes contradicted. 

Not waiting for them to get their act together, Kyo propelled himself toward their class after finding a way around the Ice wall. Plummeting their class into utter chaos. Fully embracing the cat form he was given, Kyo ran through their class with impressive speed and increased reflexes. Dealing multiple blows all over his victims' bodies before moving on. Stockpiling bombs with every hit and every footstep until finally detonating them when the need arises. Either to defend himself or his teammates from attacks or to send people flying in different directions. It also proved to be a powerful deterrent to get too close to allies since he could control the range of the explosions to attack nearby people. 

Meanwhile, the four of them continued to fumble over each other as they barked different orders at their classmates. Their friends paying the price for their lack of leadership, as they became easy targets while they struggled to decide which of them to follow. What little teamwork they had was soon abandoned as the class focused on keeping injuries to a bare minimum.

 **“What are you losers doing?! Get your asses in gear and attack them!”**  Bakugou shouted over the deafening booms. Trying his best to gain control of the situation while blocking attacks for his teammates when he could. He’d barely saved Uraraka from running straight into an explosion. His frustration growing with each student that converged around Deku. Their biases influencing them to follow Deku or Icyhot instead of him. 

The realization that people were hesitant to put their trust in him stung more than Bakugou thought it would. Another painful reminder that he lacked something crucial. Something Deku had naturally that he flaunted in front of him every chance he got. He thought he had proven himself to everyone by exhibiting his leadership skills during last week's fight against class B, but it seemed it wasn’t enough to change their opinions of him. Bakugou could feel his blood begin to boil. 

 **“You can’t be afraid to get blown up,”**  he advised over the growing lump in his throat. Making an effort to keep his voice level.

 **“Kacchan, we need to regroup!”**  Deku argued back in that annoying self-righteous tone. 

 **“Tsk,”**  was all that came over the communication device in response. Frustrated, Bakugou flies at the nerd, grabbing hold of his metal mouth guard before taking them both to the sky. Ignoring Deku’s shrieks of protest. “Take a good long look, you damn nerd,” the ash-blonde commanded the crying teen in his grip. The communication device momentarily switched off.

From above, it became apparent that there was only so much the class could do against the shinobi’s teamwork. It was leaps and bounds ahead of their own. They witnessed Tsubasa’s impressive wind defense protect his teammates from the ranged immobilization attacks from Frog and Tapearms. Observed the devastation left in Kyo’s wake as he zig-zagged through their class. Littering the already hazardous terrain and even their allies with booby-traps, causing mass panic. And of course had already witnessed the versatility that Tohru’s Transformation quirk provided her teammates when she gave her teammates and herself animal traits that can help them in any situation, as well as cover her teammates' blindspots. 

“Do you understand now?” Bakugou boomed, throwing Deku down into the fray to help out a struggling group of their classmates. The ash-blond was stubborn and overwhelmingly tenacious, but he wasn’t stupid. If Deku had the class’s full support, than Bakugou would just have to convince the nerd to back up his plan for them to win. “We need to break their formation by immobilizing Carrot Top **_now_ **. Before he destroys our ranks.” 

The nerd landed in front of Asui and Koda just in time to break apart Tsubasa’s wind attack with another one of his Full Cowling kicks.  **“Kacchan, we can’t risk sending in a large group to confront him. With one touch, Kyo could use us to hurt our teammates,”**  Deku fretted in his usual overthink everything mentality. Even though the longer they waited, the less likely they were to win the exercise. Kyo needed to be restrained now if they had any hope to get to Tohru. After a brief hesitation, he continued,  **“We need to focus on trying to keep him at bay with our long-ranged attacks while the rest of us go after the headband.”**

Bakugou liked to think that he’s calmed down a bit from the days where he actively tried to destroy Deku every time he saw him. The last couple of months, being officially in on his secret and training with him under All Might himself forced them to work together frequently. Bakugou’s new philosophy to  _“win and save”_  was very important to him. That doesn’t mean he’s entirely at peace with his forced relationship with his new rival. Bakugou had plenty of opportunities to witness Deku grow in strength and dissect his fighting style and motivations. The nerd was extremely dedicated and had the heart of a  _“true hero.”_ But even so, Bakugou couldn’t help but shake the thought that Deku was just downright selfish.

 **“Don’t be an idiot. Didn’t you learn anything from my fight yesterday?”**  Bakugou yelled, exasperated. He knows that the stalker was probably watching the fight closer than he was. No doubt writing enough notes to create a book on the topic. “ **He can dodge long-ranged attacks like it’s nothing. You have to get in close if you’re going to have any sort of chance to beat him,”**  Bakugou urged harder. His knuckles turning white with how hard he was balling them at his sides. 

Deku shook his head while he used another kick to break through Feather's wind attacks.  **“We have enough powers amongst us to keep him at bay from a distance. There's no need to sacrifice people to get the job done.”**

This was precisely why Bakugou couldn’t stand Deku sometimes. Once he had something in mind, he refused to give it up. For better or for worse. Confident that his way was the best way to handle any situation because of his stalker Esque knowledge or because he’s All Might's successor. Bakugou noticed it a few times during their discussions with All Might. Bakugou would express his opinions about how One For All might work but would be shrugged off by Deku, who would immediately poke holes in his reasoning. Only ever accepting what he had to say if All Might himself acknowledged his opinions.

Bakugou was forced to accept that he wasn’t perfect. But from what Bakugou witnessed, Deku had never been forced to admit that fact. His life only getting better by gaining All Might's powers. Deku had been chosen. Everything he set out to do miraculously working out for him in the end. Unlike Bakugou. 

 **“Since when are you afraid of getting hurt to win?”**  the explosive hero sneered back. Dodging explosion after explosion as he tried to close in on Kyo. A task that would be so much easier if he had more people to help corral him. His anger was reaching dangerous levels.  **“Just be competent, and that won’t be an issue. Stop playing into his hands!”**

They were getting nowhere. 

 **“Kacchan, we’re running out of time. If we don’t get that headband soon, then we’re all going to fail. Is that what you want?”**  Deku chastised over the communication device. His desperation for Bakugou to submit to his plan, making his voice uncharacteristically harsh and even peaked the mic. 

Bakugou ground his teeth together.  _‘That was childish,’_  he thought to himself. Deku might not have intended it, but his words painted Bakugou as the bad guy. The passive-aggressive question marking him as the person responsible for their crappy predicament. Even now, Bakugou could feel the atmosphere change as classmates started shooting him dirty looks. 

“News flash Einsteins’, this is not the time to have this discussion!” Jirou sassed, dodging a blow Kyo aimed at her stomach with a shield courtesy of Momo. Her anger at the helplessness she felt outweighing her self-preservation instincts by insulting her hot-headed classmate while he was already in a mood. She’d gladly take on his wrath if it meant the two boys would put aside their differences and agree on a plan to win. However, she instantly regretted that decision when the muted shade of ash invades her field of vision, followed by something substantial colliding into her side. The ground where she had previously been standing exploded violently with a deafening  **_BOOM!_ **

Bakugou somehow managed to get to her in time with the help of his quirk, though not unscathed. A pained hiss escaped his lips as he felt one of his ears rupture thanks to the proximity of the explosion. Gritting his teeth through the pain. Bakugou wrapped his arms around her protectively as they were thrown to the ground from the momentum. Doing his best to shield her from the intense heat and sharp rubble as they skidded across the ground. 

“Why do I always end up saving your sorry ass?” Bakugou muttered when they finally came to a stop. Unable to hear his voice due to the painful ringing in his ears. He pushed himself off of her with a pained grunt; his movements stiff due to his bruised muscles. Her eyes looked concerned, and her lips were moving a mile a minute, though he couldn’t hear what she said. Self-conscious, he turns away from her and raises his hand to gingerly touch his injured ear, only for it to come back covered in blood. The sight turning his stomach. ‘ _That’s definitely going to speed up my hearing loss.’_

Bakugou jumps slightly when Jirou suddenly comes into his line of sight. She was trying to ask him something, but the message was lost on him. Her purple eyes widen in realization when she takes in his confused scowl. She immediately takes the headphones off of her head and places them over his ears. Completely unconcerned about the blood. In sloppy JSL, she signed,  _“These headphones should help counter the ringing in your ears and protect them from further damage.”_  She was right. The low humming that the Bluetooth headphones produced had already lessened the ringing considerably. He still couldn’t hear much, but it was relieving all the same. He muttered an awkward thanks, hoping it was clear enough to understand. 

A movement to his left announces the arrival of a worried Kirishima and Deku. The latter stopping in his tracks when he sees his bloodied hand. “See, we need to knock him out of commission before anyone else is taken out,” Bakugou snapped harshly, holding his hand up for emphasis. Hoping his voice was at a reasonable level.

“Hang on, let me think,” Deku urged, his voice too quiet and muffled to Bakugou’s ears. 

Bakugou saw red. Deku talked a big game about not wanting to sacrifice anyone, but his hesitation was leaving everyone vulnerable. He’d had enough. Irritated, Bakugou lashed out. “Fuck, Deku! Why can’t you ever go with my plan for once in your life?! You owe me that much!” Bakugou argued back. He was desperate for a chance to prove himself. To Deku, to the class, to All Might, to everyone that had ever doubted him. Bakugou would prove to all of them that he had what it took to be a leader. 

Deku was speechless, which to Bakugou meant he didn’t value what he had to offer. “Fuck it, do whatever you want. I’m going to do it my way,” Bakugou snapped, already running full speed at his target. Over his shoulders, he offers his classmates a last token of advice. “I’m going to create an opening for you to win, so you better complete things on your end.” 

And with that, he left them to their own devices. An uncomfortable looking Kirishima right on his heels. Good, according to his observations, Kyo’s detonation quirk had just much trouble breaking through Kirishima’s hardening quirk, as Bakugou’s did. That gave him an idea. 

“Squad, on me!” he called over the chaos. 

Glimpses of yellow, black, and pink moved into his peripheral vision. A smirk spreading across his face. He didn’t need to look back to know that his ragtag group of idiots had rallied behind him to attack as a unified front. Bakugou would never say it to any of their smug faces, but he absolutely loved his squad. He couldn’t think of anyone he'd rather have charged into battle with him. Always trusting that he knows what he’s doing and that he will lead them to a glorious victory.  _‘I’ll show all of them,’_  Bakugou vowed. He didn’t need the rest of those rejects. Bakugou would make his plan succeed with his own squad.

Bakugou adjusts the borrowed headphones on top of his head. “Thanks to Deku’s hesitation earlier, my ears are mostly shot at the moment,” Bakugou admitted to his friends before they closed in on their opponent. All of them were aware of his ongoing battle with Tinnitus. “That means I can’t hold your hand during this fight. So you all have to give him everything you got. You got that?” Four heads nodded in understanding.

“Good,” he grinned. Bakugou looked over his shoulder at the only people willing to follow him without a second thought. Idiots, the whole lot of them, but a force to be reckoned with if pointed in the right direction with clear instructions. “Now listen up, I’m only going to be giving your orders once, so you better pay attention.”

“Shitty-Hair and Pikachu, we’re going to be attacking that bastard head-on,” the ash-blonde called over his shoulder. Bakugou and Kirishima had the best chance of approaching the explosive shinobi without being harmed, while Kaminari would be useful if he managed to stun him with his quirk. 

“Horns, I want you to juggle your time between shrinking our fighting area by skating around us and also by using your quirk to offer us support whenever needed,” he ordered, with a smirk. Mina’s acid was incredibly versatile. If used correctly, her quirk should allow her to limit Kyo’s movement considerably, as well as help her to evade his physical attacks should he try to attack her. 

“Leave it to me!” the pinkette saluted, her voice barely audible in his ears. She was already using her quirk to slide alongside them. 

To Sero, he adds, “Soy Sauce Face, stick to the sidelines and wait for your chance to grab him.” While the rest of them tried their best to back Kyo in a corner, it will be up to Sero to immobilize the shinobi when they finally manage to get the drop on him. His new ultimate move Double Tape Lasso--or stupidly shortened to DTL--would surely come in handy. The dark-haired hero had made great strides in converting his old habit of sharply angling his body to further the reach of his tape, into a way to hide a second lasso within the blindspot his angled body created. When a target tried to dodge one strand of tape, they would immediately get ensnared in the second. A technique that had managed to catch Bakugou in mid-air during a practice fight. Earning Sero, his first and only win against the ash-blonde.

Their trump card, however, was Kaminari. “Pikachu, when you get an opportunity, let him have it. Don’t worry if you hit us,” Bakugou authorized when they closed in on their target. Their group was mostly immune to Kaminari’s quirk at this point, having been shocked both accidentally and on purpose countless times. It still hurt like hell, but it no longer stunned them anymore. The pain they could live with, but they couldn’t afford for Dunceface to hold back his attack. 

“You sure you’ll be enough to keep me pinned down?” Kyo taunted over his shoulder, before suddenly turning on his heels to face them. His trademark smirk on his face, which exposed one of his fangs. “Do me a favor and take a little dirt nap for a while,” he laughed as he snapped both of his hands. 

“Kirishima,” The explosive hero called, veering off to the side with Kaminari firmly held in his grip. Sero and Mina slowing themselves down to let Kirishima charge on ahead of them.

“On it!” Kirishima called back, his body instantly transforming into his Unbreakable form. His sharp fingers ripped a large piece of stone from the floor and hold it up in front of him to shield his teammates from the incoming explosions. Using his own body as a bracer to keep it firmly rooted in place. His body holding strong as blast after blast chipped away at his defenses. By the end of the barrage, Kirishima’s improvised shield was reduced to nothing in his hands, but he succeeded in his task of protecting his friends as they closed the distance to their target.

Bakugou erupts from the smog of Kyo’s attack and lands a solid kick on the shinobi’s shoulder. Forcing him to take a knee from the strength of the blow. As expected, the orange-haired teen immediately moves to detonate Bakugou’s leg. With a smug grin, the hero-in-training twists his body in mid-air. Positioning his marked leg right in front of the shinobi’s face the second, he snaps his fingers. With no time to cancel his attack, they both get hit with an impressive explosion at point-blank range. 

Pain flares up the ash-blondes leg, but he pushes it to the back of his mind. He knew that his surprise attack wouldn’t be enough to put Kyo down for the count. A ferocious growl sounds to his right, further supporting that hypothesis. The shinobi suddenly appears in front of him. A clawed hand attempting to take a swipe at his face, but it’s slightly off target due to the shinobi’s frequently blinking eyes. 

The explosive hero dodges the attack effortlessly. Despite missing his opponent, Kyo continues to follow through with his slash until it hits the ground. Once his hand makes contact, he shifts his weight on his wrist, twisting as he does so, to land a heavy kick at the ash-blonde’s chest. The strike causing Bakugou to fall backward.

Quick as a flash, a powerful jagged hand grabs hold of Kyo’s extended leg. Lifting him awkwardly into the air. Kyo snaps his fingers out of reflex, but the explosion bounces off of the hardened hand harmlessly. His attack only serving to burn his ankle in the process. Desperate, Kyo’s sharp claws try to grab hold of the floor to keep himself grounded to no avail. As soon as he’s lifted over Kirishima’s head, the ball of sunshine slams him to the ground with deadly force. Causing Kyo to cough up a small amount of blood.

The redhead's eyes widened in concern. “Hey, are you alright, man?” he asked his opponent. His grip loosening around the limp body below him without realizing it.

“Idiot, don’t lower your guard!” Bakugou scolded, rushing to restrain the shinobi with Sero right on his heels.

Carrot Top, of course, took advantage of his kindness. Kicking out of his hold and back-flipping out of reach. His injured ankle stumbling slightly on his landing a few feet away. Kyo’s crimson eyes took a moment to study their positions around him. Noting how Bakugou and Kirishima stood in front of him, that Kaminari and Sero flanked each of his sides and, of course, how Mina circled them continuously as she covered the terrain with her acid. 

‘He’s starting to realize how much trouble he’s in,’ Bakugou deduced. ‘That means his next attack should be on the person he thinks is the highest threat.’ 

Bakugou prepared himself to block an attack for either Sero or Mina. But he was caught entirely off guard when Kyo made a mad dash for Kaminari instead. The ash-blonde didn’t even have a chance to shout a warning to the half-wit before Kyo snapped his fingers to send Bakugou to the ground. All the while raising his arm to deliver a blow at the electric user. 

To everyone’s surprise, Kaminari managed to dodge Kyo’s swing. Even jumping out of the way of the shinobi’s follow up attack to detonate the ground behind him a few milliseconds before Kyo snapped his fingers. The blonde’s hair sparkling with the partial activation of his quirk. No one looked more shocked than Kyo did. Who blinked dumbly at the spot Kaminari should have been incapacitated on. 

The Bakusquad took advantage of his surprise. Each of them attacking simultaneously to take down the troublesome shinobi. Bakugou launched himself at Kyo to steal his attention away from Mina, who slid in and kicked the legs out from under him with one of her break dancing moves. Her acid quirk also preventing their opponent from using his quirk to detonate the ground around them. Kaminari took advantage of the acid Kyo now laid in to send his quirk in a straight path towards their target. 

The shinobi’s muscles seizing up violently from the shock. And massive explosions across Gym Gamma detonated all at once with the accidental release of Kyo’s quirk. The result knocking several students prone and tore up a significant amount of the floor. Kirishima and Bakugou immediately tackled him to the ground. Fighting the electric currents flowing through Kyo’s body while they grabbed hold of an arm each. A strange gurgling growl sounded in Kyo’s throat. The sound making Bakugou’s blood curdle. 

“Kirishima, pry his mouth open. Make sure he doesn’t bite his tongue off,” Bakugou ordered. It wouldn’t look good if they ended up killing one of their new classmates on the second day of class. 

The red-head obeyed. Managing to do so with little resistance. Shoving a torn part of his hero costume in his mouth before helping Bakugou and Sero retrain his arms to his back with tape. As a precaution, they taped his fingers together so he wouldn’t be able to use his quirk. Only when Bakugou was sure that he was fully restrained did Kaminari finally turn off his electricity. The extended-release of electricity short-circuiting his brain to make that dumb expression on his face. 

 

A relieved sigh escaped Kyo’s lips. To their surprise, he made no move to escape. Seeming content to just rest limply against the ground. Not even shifting his weight to make himself more comfortable. Bakugou noted the sweat that dripped from Kyo's brow and that his breath came in short pants after spitting the rag out of his mouth.  _‘He must have exhausted himself when he overused his quirk. The idiot probably can’t move at all,’_  Bakugou theorized. Especially when he didn’t waste any energy to make any wisecracks at them. 

Regardless, the explosive hero kept a firm hold of his prisoner. On the off chance that this was just part of an elaborate ruse to lull them into a false sense of security. With only a few minutes left until the time was up, they couldn’t risk Kyo breaking free. Unlike Tohru, the twins could keep fighting if they manage to escape their captors. Bakugou’s crimson gaze drifted towards the rest of the class to take in their progress. 

Just as Bakugou had predicted. Once Kyo had been taken off the board, their hopeless situation turned around for the better. Allowing Deku’s group to capture Tsubasa almost immediately. In the end, class A managed to restrain both guards, but they couldn’t retrieve Tohru’s headband before their time limit expired. The kunoichi was miraculously able to dodge the class’s advances until the very end. 

No one took that loss harder than Momo. Ponytail had been attacked relentlessly by the kunoichi throughout the entirety of the match. The Vice-president trying her best to create useful gadgets to support her teammates, but Ribbons would attack her or her creations to prevent her from aiding her friends. It was a shock to everyone to see the bubbly ditzy girl fight so aggressively. Apparently, not over the rude words Ponytail had said to her teammate during Homeroom. 

In the final seconds, Momo had managed to block a blow from the kunoichi by handcuffing one of her hands to herself. Blocking off her retreat and making her quirk useless in the process. Ponytail’s eyes sparkling with triumph as she yanked Tohru to her to remove the headband from her person. The victory was theirs. At least, that’s what they all believed. 

The brunette swiftly pulled one of the dangly ribbons from her head. In a fluid movement, she gave the hair tie a little flick. Before their very eyes, the ribbon defied gravity as it remained completely straight in midair, as it morphed into a shimmering silver sai. Twirling the ninja weapon in her hands once before cutting through the chain connecting them--and their hopes of winning--like warm butter. Once free, she transformed herself into a cheetah form and ran out of their reach. 

“We’ll class, that was an underwhelming showing on your part,” Aizawa commented when they all gathered around after their lesson. His fellow teachers standing beside him. An assortment of expressions painted their features. Ranging from surprise to abashment. The trio stood to the side of them, with only Kyo looking a little worse for wear. The Underground hero didn’t seem all that surprised by the outcome, but he was definitely disappointed by their lack of cooperation. “I expected better from you all. Who would like to make a guess as to why you failed so miserably?” 

A gloomy silence washed over the class. Everyone’s gaze dropping to their feet. It was incredibly embarrassing to be beaten 3v20 when their opponents were supposed to be on the defensive. No wait, it was 3v21 now that Shinsou was in their class. Bakugou had worried that he wouldn’t be able to hold his own in their class, but he was the one that ended up catching the other Hitsuzen twin. With a replica of Aizawa’s capture weapon no less. The ash-blondes crimson eyes narrowed at his new classmate. Compared to the rest of the class, he looked relatively unharmed. No signs of soot from Kyo’s explosions or tears in his gym clothes from Tsubasa’s wind attacks anywhere to be seen on his person.  _‘How in the hell..?’_

“Sensei, may I?” Ponytail cut in self-consciously, her hand slightly raised. Aizawa gave her a curt nod to continue with her explanation. “We were completely disorganized. We failed to heed All Might's words at the beginning of class about the importance of assigning roles within our group. As a result, we fell apart under the lack of leadership,” she began sullenly. Her head lowering in shame, the longer she spoke, which spread to the rest of the class.

“In contrast, our opponents' teamwork was flawless. Covering each other's weaknesses and enhancing their teammates' strengths. Our enemies took advantage of our infighting and further sowed seeds of chaos within our ranks,” she further explained for the class. Frustrated tears threatened to fall from her onyx eyes. “Then there my screw up at the end. I allowed myself to celebrate our supposed victory before grabbing Honda-san’s headband. I let everyone down, and for that, I am truly sorry,” she finished with a bow.

Aizawa let out a long exasperated sigh. “Yeah, that pretty much sums up your questionable performance,” he agreed bluntly, causing everyone to deflate. They had never failed so severely before. In teamwork, no less. A loud cough steals their attention. “But it wasn’t for nothing. It’s important to remember that you can learn more from failure than you can from success. Besides that, we witnessed some creative skills exhibited on both sides. From Bakugou, Mina, Kaminari, Shinsou, Tohru, and Yaoyorozu, especially,” Aizawa acknowledged. Everyone’s spirits rising slightly from the praise. Bakugou shot a smug smirk Deku’s way.

“However, that doesn’t mean any of you can afford to slack off,” the underground continued. His expression was dark and difficult to read. His onyx eyes scanning the crowd of students one by one. “Look alive, everyone. This is when the real training begins,” he finished a little wickedly. And with that, class A immediately resumed with their first-ever Quirkless lesson much to everyone’s dismay. They about dropped dead.  

 

**_Kyo P. O. V._ **

 

Everyone was utterly exhausted from the teamwork activity. Their poor abused muscles and minds still reeling from being pushed beyond their limits.  _‘Good, that's what we want,’_  Kyo purred to himself. Taking great pleasure from seeing their haggard forms prepare themselves for the next bout of training. 

Every tear in their clothing, reddening burn on their skin and bruise forming on their person was a physical reminder of the lessons that he and his teammates had literally beaten into them. Each injury providing crucial hints about what they still needed to work on, whether that be defensive timing, offensive power, strategic planning, and of course, teamwork. Over the semester, Aizawa and the trio would be responsible for building off the foundation of what they learned today; to help them improve their overall fighting capabilities and overcome their weaknesses.

It was no accident that they’re starting the Quirkless activity while they’re tired and beaten down. Aizawa and the shinobi wanted to replicate a simulation in which their quirks and bodies were nowhere near their top condition. This way, the class could easily relate to a realistic situation in which their quirks might be rendered useless due to fatigue. The most common reason they might find themselves left powerless one day.  _‘Even if it’s not the most pressing reason for this training,’_  the carrot top couldn’t help but think, as he too stretched his muscles to prepare himself for the intense fighting to come. 

Kyo winces slightly when he stretches too far. Class A won’t be the only ones fighting while exhausted. The brawl with Bakugou and his friends had aggravated his still-healing injuries. Not to mention that his accidental detonation at the end had zapped most of his stamina in one fell swoop. Even as he stood obediently beside Aizawa and his teammates, it took all his will power to keep himself at attention with his eyes open. If he wasn’t careful, he could easily fall asleep on his feet.

A female voice suddenly got his attention. “Similar to the teamwork lesson, you’ll be pitted against one of the shinobi,” Midnight sensei started to explain. She held up a white flag with a red number 1 written on it. “Your task is simple. One by one, each of you will be trying to retrieve the flag with your seat number from one of these shinobi. Neither of you will be allowed to use your quirks, and doing so will disqualify you from the activity.”

“To pass, you need to grab your numbered flag or showcase your competence to the shinobi testing you,” She continued to explain before a student interrupted her.

“You mean they’re the ones scoring us?” a disembodied voice asked suddenly. Her floating clothes moving back in forth to suggest she was waving to get everyone’s attention. Kyo found the invisible girl’s presence unsettling. Her aura, as well as her body hard to pick up. Putting him on edge. “Is that fair?”

“It is,” Aizawa answered in an authoritative tone. One that commanded you obey without question. A tone that always stirred Kyo’s mischievous personality, even though he had nothing but respect for the dark-haired man standing a couple of feet to his left. “Just because they are your classmates, don’t forget they are here to teach you as well. During the Quirkless lessons, they have as much authority as any other teacher here at UA. Do what you’re told, or you’ll be paying for it during your training sessions.” 

“We’re gonna die,” wept a bulky guy with big lips.

“We’ll be here to supervise to make sure it doesn’t get too out of hand,” a skinny man with long golden hair promised cheerfully. Doing his best to look confident, but there were clear signs of unease painted on his features. 

“That’s not very comforting,” a girl with large unblinking eyes pointed out.

“If that’s everything, let's get started.” Kyo interrupted impatiently. The longer he stayed awake without replenishing his stamina, the weaker he was going to grow. He needed to get this lesson over with quickly and take a cat nap if he was going to have any sort of hope of making it the rest of the day. Even now, he felt his eyelids growing heavier. Screaming for him to fall asleep. 

The trio randomly grabbed a string with seven flags attached to it and tied it across their chests. Not only did the future heroes have to retrieve their flags, but they also had to make sure to grab the correct one from the numerous ones that dangled from their person. Upping the ante just a little more. 

“When I call your number step forward and line up away from your classmates,” Kyo instructed. A precaution to dissuade the students from strategizing with one another. It would defeat the purpose of their aptitude test if they got support from their friends. “1, 4, 7, 8, 16, 19, and 20.” 

Once the seven students stepped forward and stood in a half-circle around him, he continued with the instructions. “Now, before we start. I wanted to remind you that you’re not allowed to use your quirks. Weapons, however--” he began, motioning to the cart Tohru rolled over to him. On it was an assortment of weapons from practice swords to daggers. “Are fair game he finished with a smirk the revealed his fangs.

He casually grabs a dagger and begins to twirl it in his hands. “Before you throw a fit, they’re all wooden. No way am I putting a real weapon in your hands yet. You’ll probably end up stabbing yourself,” Kyo explained with a halfhearted laugh. With that, they got started with the exercise. 

Kyo was too lazy to read the info packets Aizawa provided him, so he didn’t remember many of the student's names yet. Not that it would’ve helped much. He tended not to pay much attention when it came to people's names anyway. When you meet as many people as they do, it’s incredibly challenging to keep them all straight. Not to mention that sometimes the other world versions of people you’ve encountered before have entirely different names. To combat this, Kyo preferred to make up nicknames for the people he meets. His crimson eyes scan the students assigned to him.  _‘Let’s see there’s Sparkles, Eyebrows, Sparky, Kiri, Stalker, Disgusting, and Ponytail. There’s a couple that looks interesting, but I don’t expect much from the rest.’_

“Let’s get this over with. Whoever wants to start, step forward,” the explosive shinobi ordered impatiently. Dropping into a low crouch. His preferred defensive stance since Kyo's movements tended to be more animalistic. 

A sparkly nitwit with golden hair doesn’t hesitate to step forward. Surprising Kyo with his initiative. “First is me, mon ami,” the teen announced in a heavy French accent that made him cringe with its exaggerated pronunciation. The shinobi knew his accent was weird to most people, but this one grated against his ears painfully. “Time to bring some class to your life.”

As one would expect, the match ended a couple of seconds later. It wasn’t even the taunt that had set the explosive shinobi off, though that didn’t help things either. Mostly, it was because Kyo knew the guy wasn’t worth his time. He knew that the second he laid eyes on the guy. Couple that with his unjustified arrogance and Kyo had no choice but to knock some sense into him the only way he knew how. With a simple hand chop to the neck. Aizawa gave Kyo an earful before resuming to the next match. 

Next up, was the purple perv that Sparky told him about the day before. Kyo’s crimson eyes glowed red the second the little pipsqueak stepped forward. Kyo’s anger and bloodlust, making the gym instantly 20 degrees hotter than it had a second before. ‘How dare he try to take indecent photos of Tohru!’ he growled to himself. His body towering over his soon to be victim threateningly. A cough from Aizawa reminded him that he wasn’t allowed to kill the insignificant grape in front of him. Fine. But as this kid soon learned, there were all kinds of fates worse than death. The kid didn’t stand a chance of getting a flag, but Kyo toyed with him regardless. Beating the grape juice out him until All Might finally called time. In retrospect, Kyo was amazed they had let him go for as long as he did. Maybe the teachers were aware of his despicable behavior and decided to turn a blind eye to the justified beating. 

After the first two, Kyo made a conscious effort to reign his antics in a bit. It wouldn’t be fair if he didn’t give the remaining students a chance at least. Eyebrow's speed is impressive, but his fighting style was too predictable, and he ran out of stamina quickly. It took him no time at all to memorize his movements and find an opportune time to deliver counter-attacks to trip him up. In the end, he was unable to retrieve his flag before Kyo decided it was enough and ended the match. 

Kirishima was one of the few names he knew, though Kyo quickly adopted the affectionate nickname “Kiri,” that his friend group called him. The red-head was incredibly strong even without his quirk. He was also surprisingly fast Kyo noticed when he almost grabbed a flag after a sudden lunge forward, catching him off guard. He required better form when fighting, but is impressive nonetheless. He could also benefit from increasing his speed since it will transfer to his hardened form as well. While he didn’t retrieve a flag, Kyo gave him a passing grade for the activity. 

Momo had experience with weapons, but her form needed improvement. It was sloppy and easily broken. Though the craftsmanship of her weapons was impressive. Not entirely on par with his, but for someone who never made them the “correct” way. They were sufficient. Kyo, unfortunately, had to dock her points, because they were supposed to be using wooden weapons since none of them had been appropriately trained to wield the yet. Regardless of that mistake, she passed the lesson. 

The invisible stalker was a nightmare. Not only did she not take the lesson seriously, but she was also annoying, if not a bit terrifying. Her presence was hard to pinpoint, sometimes even disappearing completely, even when he could see her floating clothes in front of him. With how sharp his senses are, that shouldn’t be possible. That’s why he had almost killed her at their sleepover the other night. He had felt something latch onto him roughly and hadn’t noticed her presence in the slightest for a good few seconds after the initial contact. Since then, he could feel her invisible eyes on him now and then and feel her lurking in the background like a creepy shadow. In lamen terms, she creeped the hell out of him. Like sparkles, he ended up ending her fight relatively quickly, just to get away from her. 

The last one up was Kaminari or “Sparky,” as Kyo liked to call him. Overall, he lacked a proper fighting style, but his instincts were on point. ‘No, that's not right,’ Kyo realized when he saw the golden-haired boy land clumsily after expertly dodging a lightning-fast blow Kyo had aimed at his stomach. It seemed Kaminari’s fighting instincts were there but were slow and underutilized. The reason Kaminari surprised him during the last class and why he was currently able to dodge Kyo’s advances now was because of something the shinobi had never experienced before. Kaminari’s “quirk” was responding to Kyo’s detonation powers, notifying the hero of his opponent's movements and converting the dynamic nature of his quirk to speed up his reflexes in the process. Kyo could see it in the way Kaminari’s hair stood up and sparked whenever he got close. Even when the electric user wasn’t actively calling on the use of his quirk. 

Sparky was technically breaking the rules, but not of his own will. It was something Aizawa briefly explained as living quirks. Something that had a mind of its own or responded to outside influences regardless of what the user wished. Making these uncontrollable instances no fault of the person in question. Take Bakugou; for example, he sweats a nitroglycerin substance from his palms. Even though it’s his quirk and he can make himself sweat more when fighting, it is something that is done naturally and can’t be turned off. Even Aizawa’s powers can’t keep him from sweating, only from creating sparks to make his sweat explode. Kaminari’s quirk somehow zeroed in on the latent lightning properties of his detonation ability to help Kaminari pick out Kyo’s movements. 

 _‘Sparky probably can’t duplicate this fighting style with anyone else at the moment,’_  he theorized, noting how Kaminari didn’t even seem aware that his quirk was activated to some extent.  _‘But if he’s able to master this power, he’ll be a force to be reckoned with in the future.’_

The shinobi was busy trying to figure out a way to help nurture Kaminari’s new ability without exposing his secret when his sharp ears picked up a conversation on the sidelines. “Wow, Kyo’s been fighting Kaminari for a while now. Though it doesn’t look like he’s making any progress getting a flag. Do you think Kyo’s tired or something?” a bubbly female voice asks. His crimson eyes risk a glance in that direction to see that cheerful girl with light brown hair talking with Tohru. 

“No, that’s not it~” Tohru assured in her usual sweet voice. Beside her was Bakugou, TapeGuy, and Tsubasa’s friend Freckles. She continues a little nervously, “Kyo loves to fight, but he doesn’t like to waste his time on people he doesn’t think are a challenge or interesting. If he doesn’t think your worth his time, he’ll knock you out with one hit. Kinda like what he did to poor Aoyama. If he enjoys a fight or an opponent, he’ll drag it out to learn more about them. It’s Kyo’s way of showing respect for one’s abilities. I believe he finds Kaminari to be a very interesting opponent. He probably wishes that Kaminari was allowed to use his quirk to see him at full power~.”

 Kyo smiles at that.  _‘Nice assessment Tohru,’_  he praises as he dodges to prevent Kaminari from grabbing his flag.

“He’s an idiot for pulling that crap in his condition,” Bakugou’s voice suddenly muttered, giving both of them pause.

Kyo didn’t need to glance at them to know that she was probably blinking at him in confusion. “I’m not sure I know what you mean,” her voice responded after a brief pause. 

There was another long pause before he whispered back, “He’s injured, isn’t he?”

The shock from that statement almost made him get hit by a punch from Kaminari. Thankfully he recovered in time to parry the blow. As he does so, he can hear Tohru trying to cover for him. Saying that he must be mistaken or something along those lines. But the ash-blonde doesn’t buy it. His voice is low when he states, “I heard him arguing with his brother earlier. Something about not pushing himself.”

Kyo’s spirits drop.  _‘Damn it. So they did hear us,’_ he berated himself. ‘Was that all they heard?’

After hearing that, Tohru doesn’t deny it any further. Her voice is small when she hesitantly admits that he’s still recovering from an injury from their last mission. She doesn’t say anything else, and while Bakugou is still suspicious, he doesn’t press the subject any further.  _‘Shit, these kids are too smart for their own good.’_

Kaminari didn’t end up getting a flag, but Kyo passed him anyway. He showed terrific potential if officially taught how to fight and utilize his powers. Kyo found a comfy spot and watched the rest of the matches while slowly regaining his stamina. His little brother was the next proctor. He would be testing Pinky, Toad, Bubbly Girl, Rockhead, Tape, Candycane, and Freckles.

Pinky and Toad were both athletic but lacked the fighting skills to even touch him. Both failing to capture their flags or pass the class. Bubbly Girl had impressive fighting abilities. She managed to dodge one of Tsubasa’s powerful kicks and impress everyone by grabbing her flag before he could counter. Being the first of her classmates to grab their flag. Poor Rockhead and Tape tried their hardest, but it was clear that they both still had a long way to go before they could take anyone on quirkless. Everyone expected Candy Cane and Freckles to do the best, but that turned out not to be the case. Both of their fighting styles relied too much on their quirks. They had a lot of trouble not using their quirks and ended up getting disqualified for intentionally breaking the rules. 

Tohru was the last teacher of the class. The students assigned to her were Tail, Big lips, Mask, Ears, Raven, Bakugou, and lastly, Shinsou. Ojiro had martial arts knowledge, but they all incorporate his tail. He had no idea what to do without using it. Downright embarrassing, he couldn’t even throw a punch without getting knocked off balance. He failed, obviously.

Big lips and Mask were too slow to keep up with Tohru, let alone touch her. Ears picked a wooden dagger from the cart and was passable when wielding it. She just needed formal training but had potential. Tokoyami was not as skilled with a weapon. His movements were clumsy and straightforward. 

Bakugou had been busy studying Tohru’s fighting style, and the timing of her moves carefully as everyone fought her. His crimson eyes watching how she moved, dodged, and of course, how she attacked. Coupling that with the knowledge he accumulated with his fight with her earlier, it was no surprise that he ended up retrieving his flag for her. His attacks were nowhere as fast or as strong without his explosions. However, Bakugou's intellect and tenacity was a force to be reckoned with even without his quirk aiding his endeavors. 

Shinsou was also very skilled. Since he doesn’t typically rely on his quirk to fight, this lesson wasn’t much different than the last one. Shinsou seemed well versed in standard ninja techniques because he was able to evade her attacks and anticipate hers. He used a replica of Aizawa’s capture weapon to restrain Tohru’s arm long enough to capture his flag to secure his victory. Out of the 21 students in their care, only Uraraka, Shinsou, and Bakugou managed to reclaim their flags from the shinobi. Students who passed regardless of this were Kirishima, Kaminari, Momo, and Jirou. Making a total of 7 students out of 21. One third passed. Two-thirds failed. 

Kyo is incredibly disturbed how reliant everyone is of their quirks since, without them, they are defenseless. It was stupid to depend solely on your powers no matter who you were. The trio knew that better than anyone since some worlds they've visited made their abilities utterly useless. The orange-haired shinobi had conflicting feelings towards the source of his powers. Well versed in the benefits, they provided, as well as their weaknesses. Each having a time and place to be utilized. And while not having access to them would be a blow to his fighting capabilities, they didn’t make him utterly helpless without them. Judging from the faces of his teammates and Aizawa, they felt the same. 

“7 out of 21 passed. Y’all suck,” Kyo stated bluntly with his arms crossed. His P.E. clothes were torn and battered beyond repair. He felt like a slight breeze could knock him over with how exhausted he still felt, but his eyes burned with a fiery intensity as he stared down the class of would-be heroes. 

“Hey man, we tried our best,” Tape answered for the class. A few soot-covered heads nodding in agreement. “Give us a break.”

Before one of the teachers could interject, Kyo continued, “You think that’s all that matters?”

The class immediately fell silent. 

“It doesn’t in case you were wondering,” the shinobi answered for them. Kyo's intense gaze making a few of them break eye contact with him. “You think a villain is just going to spare your life because you tried your best? No, they’re gonna kill you the second they have the opportunity,” Kyo states flatly. Earning a couple surprised gasps. Kyo didn’t care if he was scaring them. Someone needed to give them all a wake-up call. They needed to understand how vulnerable they were if they suddenly didn’t have their quirks.

“You probably think that what we’re teaching you doesn’t matter. That you just need to do well enough to pass this section, but I’m telling you now. If you don’t take this seriously, you will die; and probably sooner rather than later,” Kyo urged, hoping to scare them into taking this training seriously if they valued their lives. Aizawa and his teammates give him a displeased look, but they don’t make any moves to silence him, so he continues. 

He reaches into his pocket, grabbing hold of the wooden dagger hiding within and tosses it straight at Midoriya. Kyo blows it up a few seconds before it makes contact. The green-haired boy didn’t even have time to register that something was coming for him. Reacting to the sound of the explosion by his head instead of the “deadly” weapon hurled at his face. 

“Your instincts are shit,” Kyo announced when Freckle’s confused eyes looked back at him. “If that was a real weapon, you’d be dead right now.”

He felt a hand rest on his shoulder. His brother’s way of telling him to tone it down. “Not only will we be teaching you how to fight without using your quirks. We’ll also be teaching you how to defend against those that don’t rely on a fancy quirk to fight,” Tsubasa further explained for him. His tone was friendly, but an underlined serious still carried the importance of his words.

“By fighting like them, you’ll start to notice how they will attack you and be able to better understand their movements~” Tohru continued with a smile. “Your combat instincts will sharpen, and your reaction time will increase exponentially~.”

Their words seemed to give them a better understanding of what this training would do for them, but they still missed the bigger picture of its importance. ‘They’ll learn soon enough.’ 

As punishment for their unimpressive skills they exhibited during the quirkless assessment, they were all forced to do martial arts drills for the remainder of the period. Much to everyone's disappointment. The class soon figuring out that mischievous shinobi was a demanding teacher who was not afraid to beat them into shape. After demonstrating the drill once, Kyo would patrol them and deliver a “light” punch to their ribs if they messed up any of the moves up. All the while, the other teachers watched on and provided occasional moral support. All except Aizawa sensei, who seemed to be enjoying their pain who watched their progress with an unabashed smile on his face. And so the next hour marked Class A’s descent into Hell.  

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait. I wanted to make the fight scenes as engaging as possible while still providing information about everyones abilities and where they needed improvement. That's also why this chapter is the longest one so far. I'm still trying to find the right balance of being long enough to cover multiple encounters, but also be fun and engaging. Left me know if you have a chapter length preference. Finally introduced Kyoru into the story, so that will be an adorable element to play with from no on. Like always, I hope you're enjoying the story so far and i hope you continue to keep reading.
> 
> Also, because this chapter is so long. I might end up moving the lunch scene to the beginning of the next chapter if people complain it is too long. If that's the case, I'll make a not about that at the beginning of chapter 7.


	7. Food Wars!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A quirk explanation over lunch quickly spirals into chaos when Kyo reveals a secret. Later Bakugou challenges the shinobi to a Food War!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone, I have decided to move the lunch scene to the beginning of this chapter so If you already read that you can skip to Bakugou's P.O.V. I'm sorry for the last minute change, I thought the last chapter was a bit long.

 

 

**_ Kyo P. O. V.  _ **

Twenty-one haggard bodies stumbled from Gym Gamma after the lunch bell finally sounded. Freeing them from their unrelenting training at Kyo’s merciless hands. Every student was covered in burns and bruises, making them look like they just barely survived a Villain attack. Their rundown appearances, coupled with the half-crazed look in their eyes, frightened the other students. The other classes were giving them a wide berth as they entered the cafeteria in search of food. A wise decision since the future heroes had definitely worked up an unholy appetite. 

The whole class had towered their trays high with an assortment of food and then proceeded to devour it all in record time. The friendly banter and laughing that usually filled the two cafeteria tables that Class A frequented, was replaced with the sounds of loud chewing. Not caring in the least of what passerby's thought. They hadn’t lived through the hell they just did. 

Kyo and Tohru took a seat between Kaminari and Mina. He worried they might hold his teaching methods against them, but they didn’t seem to mind in the slightest. In fact, they seemed used to it. The explosive shinobi absently ate his salmon while he looked over at the class, which was beginning to slow their eating to a respectable rate. Some of them recovering enough strength to engage in little conversations. Kyo had to commend them for their resolve. Even though most didn’t grasp the importance of the training yet, they weren’t hopeless by any means. They did put effort into improving themselves and worked diligently to accomplish that feat. And they were incredibly fast learners. Kyo didn’t hit them nearly as much as he anticipated he would.  _ ‘Maybe, they’ll be okay after all.’ _

“Ahhh, much better!” the bubbly girl sighed happily after finishing her sixth bowl of plain white rice. She smiled at them both from across the table. “Nothing like a good meal after a day of training, am I right?” There were some nods and grunts of agreement from her still eating classmates.

“You did a remarkable job with the martial arts drills,” Kyo praised in between bites. Surprising some people. “I didn’t even need to correct you once.”

Her face brightened at the compliment. “Thank you! I interned at Gunhead’s dojo earlier this year, so I learned a lot of these moves already,” she explained.

“That explains how you got the drop on my brother earlier,” Kyo smirked, shooting Tsubasa a smug look at where he was sitting beside the green-haired boy. He didn’t appear to enjoy the teasing but tolerated it. It was the first time Kyo acknowledged his presence willingly for the first time in weeks. 

“Well, it looks like we’ll have to make the lessons harder for you to make sure you’re getting the best out of them,” Kyo observed, returning his attention to Uraraka and the rest of the students. There was a chorus of complaints with this announcement. 

“Quit your bellyaching. Some of us have real problems to deal with,” the shinobi announced, effectively shushing them all into nervous silence.

“What could possibly be troubling you?” Kaminari asked nervously.

“Well, Aizawa-sensei entrusted me to figure something out, but I'm at a loss of what to do to accomplish it,” Kyo admitted his cheeks a little pink with embarrassment. His uneasiness immediately got everyone’s attention. Before anyone could ask what it was, he pulled something from his pocket and set it on the table. To everyone’s disbelief, the item was the average smartphone. 

“Aizawa said I have to have one, but I  _ hate  _ these kinds of things, let alone have any idea how to use it. Can someone please help me out?!” Kyo whined, banging his head on the table in defeat. He and Modern technology had a mutual hatred of each other. 

Everyone blinked at him dumbly, before a familiar angry voice broke the silence.

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me. You don’t know how to use a fucking phone?” Bakugou yelled, slamming his hands on the table. The force had clattered a number of the tall stacks of plates and bowls violently. 

The copper-haired teen lifts his head slightly. “Phones aren’t allowed at Binoshi, so I never needed to know how to use one before now,” Kyo admitted. It wasn’t a lie.

“Why does Aizawa want you to have one?” Midoriya asked.

“Aizawa is acting as our guardian while we attend U.A.~” Tohru answered for him. Her voice was as sweet as always. “He wants to make sure he can get a hold of us at any time, so he gave us each a cellphone. Tsubasa and I have already figured out how to use them, but Kyo has always resented modern technology. But I think it’s because he has a tendency of breaking them with his quirk~” she finishes the last sentence with a laugh.

Kyo immediately jumps to his feet. “It’s not because of my quirk!” he hissed, his hair standing upright a little bit due to his angered state. Making him look like an angry cat. “I just blow up stuff I have no use for!” 

Kaminari takes pity on him. “Fine, hand me your phone, and I’ll try to help you figure it out,” sighed the blonde. His hand held out expectantly for the device. 

Feeling a glimmer of hope, Kyo places the phone in his hand. Their fingers grazed each other for a split second. A couple things happened simultaneously. The motion created static from Kaminari, which sets off Kyo’s Detonation ability in his hand. This results in a small explosion that, of course, torches Kyo’s phone beyond saving. There’s a couple moments of shocked silence before the whole table erupts into a fit of laughter at Kyo’s expense. The copper-haired teen sinking back into his seat in utter disbelief.

“Kyo, can I ask you something?” The green-haired boy inquired when everyone calmed down. He sat further down the table and as always was right beside his little brother. The future hero looked nervous, but his matching green eyes sparkled with an overwhelming amount of curiosity.

“Sure thing, Freckles,” Kyo urged. He would never dissuade curiosity. Especially when you could learn so much about an individual by the questions they asked. “Ask away.”

The boy was momentarily taken aback by the nickname but carried on. “Well, I was wondering why your powers are so different than your brothers. Can you explain why that is?” he asked hesitantly. The area around them quieted down as the question caught the interest of many of their classmates as well. 

“Well, it’s actually pretty simple,” Kyo began, with a genuine smile. In his peripheral vision, he could see his brother shift slightly in his seat. Though everyone’s eyes were too busy focused on him to notice. “You see, my brother got his wings from our mother, and my detonation abilities stemmed mostly from our father. He had a duel quirk of fire and lightning. Adding a little of our mother’s air manipulation created an unstable amount of conflicting energies, which has to be released somehow. Thus my Detonation quirk was created,” Kyo explained for his new classmates.  _ ‘ _

_ 'It’s not a complete lie, but definitely not the whole truth.’ _

“So that’s why my quirks been acting up these past couple days!” Kaminari exclaimed, his hair standing up a little and staticing due to his close proximity to the shinobi. “I thought a thunderstorm was approaching.”

_ ‘So he hadn’t noticed before now,’  _ Kyo thought in bewilderment.  _ ‘Is he just a complete idiot?’ P _ ushing the thought aside, he continued.

“Your quirk was probably responding to the electrical traces within my quirk. It’s the sudden discharge of electricity that allows me to detonate my explosions from a distance after all,” The copper-haired teen further explained. His crimson eyes were studying the levels of curiosity for his abilities in everyone’s eyes. So far, it looked like Kaminari, Bakugou and Midoriya were the most involved with his explanation. “Maybe if you learn to master your quirk, you could replicate a similar effect by overcharging technology?” he suggested with a laugh. 

The blonde looked excited by that prospect. “Really? You think so?” he practically begged, grabbing hold of him. Like Kyo could grant him the ability right then and there. 

After freeing himself from his clingy grip, Kyo responded, “I don’t see why not. You just need to train hard and use your brain a little.” This statement makes the blonde deflate. He sinks into his seat in a sudden onslaught of depression, while his close friends laugh at his expense. ‘ _ So he is an idiot,’  _ Kyo concluded.

“This is so unfair!” Kaminari whines with his forehead resting against the table. “Why did I have to get stuck with this difficult to control electric quirk? Why couldn't I have gotten one that's easier to deal with, like yours Kyo?”

The shinobi could only blink his eyes in confusion before the tall back haired boy carried on where his friend had left off. “That and your quirk is completely overpowered. Already placing you towards the top of our class. Must be nice,” Sero stated bitterly. 

Kyo lets out an exasperated sigh. He wanted to chastise them for already forgetting what he tried to beat into them earlier about powers not being everything. But decided on a different approach. Maybe, changing their view of what they believe to an overpowered ability would have more success. 

“My quirk’s not as overpowered as you think,” he admitted, taking some by surprise. “I'm sure you all probably have a vague idea of how my quirk works. Probably thinking something along the lines that anything I touch can detonate if I wish for it?” Kyo summarized. There were a few mumbles of agreement from everyone. 

This makes him smirk, “Well, you’re wrong.”

He raises a hand to dissuade them from interrupting. “You were close. It’s not that  _ anything  _ I touch can detonate. It’s that  _ everything  _ I touch will detonate. You see, I can’t turn my quirk off like most of you can. It’s something I’ve had to deal with ever since my quirk manifested.”

“But, that means--” Midoriya mumbled.

“That’s right. Everything I touch, every step I take, hell even the air I breathe could be turned into a bomb if I concentrate hard enough,” Kyo replied through bites of his food.

The table looked horrified. People were glancing all around them at all the potential bombs that surrounded them. All of which just needed the littlest of sparks from Kyo to activate them. It was a scary thought when you took a moment to think about it. It was a powerful ability, but one that doesn’t come without its drawbacks.

“We’re friends, right? I’ll let you in on a secret,” the shinobi offered. “You’re all focusing on the potential destructive power of my quirk, but not on its obvious weakness. The fact that I  _ can’t _  turn my quirk off is an incredible weakness of itself.”

You could practically see all the lightbulbs go off in their heads. “So, your weakness is stamina?” Freckles theorized hesitantly. 

Kyo nods. “Every quirk has a limit to where it starts to put a strain on the body. For me, I exert energy every time I touch something. So the more things I touch without detonating anything, the quicker I run out of stamina,” he explains, while taking another bite of his salmon. “Because I’m constantly using my quirk, I get incredibly tired fairly easily. When I’m fighting, the adrenaline in my body allows me to power through my fatigue, but it’s still there in the background. If I slow down for too long, I risk my fatigue catching up to me, which would prevent me from moving or worse falling unconscious.”

Bakugou spoke up for the first time. “Earlier, you said, ' _ touching without detonating,' _  made your stamina deplete faster. What does that mean?” he demanded in what Kyo was beginning to understand was the usual  _ "Bakugou" _  way.

Kyo smirks at the question. “My quirk is Detonation for a reason. My quirk wants to release the pent up energy radiating off of what I’ve “marked” in a sense,” he answered honestly.

The copper-haired teen finishes the last of his orange soda and holds up the can for everyone to see. He focuses his energy on the can, willing it to charge up with his conflicting elemental abilities. The temperature around them steadily begins to climb, and while the can starts to radiate warmth, it’s actually Kyo’s body, which emits the majority of it. He hands the can to Bakugou, who studies it for a moment before placing it on the table for someone else to examine. 

“As you can feel with the raised temperature, it takes more energy to hold back my quirk than it does to detonate it. While Bakugou might feel the physical recoil of his explosions while they’re released, I feel fatigued from the pressure of holding my makeshift bombs from exploding. If I go past my limit, the pressure increases until I either fall unconscious or everything I’ve touched within the last hour detonates at once. To combat this, I tend to detonate things I’ve touched at a harmless caliber or take cat naps to regain stamina,” he finished while wiping the sweat from his brow. Kyo then harmlessly detonates the can in Midoriya’s hands so that only a hint of smoke is released. 

“Does that mean you're tired when your not fighting?” Midoriya asked, his pencil quickly jotting notes in his singed notebook. The act reminded him of his brother. “I can see how it might get in the way of everyday life.”

The shinobi took a moment to ponder the question before answering, “Well, I like to take naps, but I wouldn’t say that I’m especially sleepy. If anything, I’m stockpiling stamina for the future. This way, I won’t have to worry about it in the event of an emergency.” He takes another bite of his food, reflecting how he feels mugged down if he couldn’t release his quirk. He looks at the electric user beside him. 

“Yo, Sparky, I assume you also have to release built-up electricity to prevent overcharging?”

“Original nickname dude,” Kaminari muttered while crossing his arms. His quirk staticing ever so slightly in his hair, though Kyo wasn't sure if it was because of their close proximity or because of his emotional state. “But to answer your question, yeah, I do. Usually, charge people’s devices or shock people for the heck of it.”

“Thanks for the warning,” Kyo thanked awkwardly. Making a show of scooting closer to Tohru. Silently grateful that he wasn’t forced to bunk with this kid. “My quirk works the same way. If I don’t release my quirk, my stamina could get sapped to potentially dangerous levels,” he explained, hinting that the energy needed to keep so many bombs took its toll on his body, which could cause him to pass out or die if he pushed himself too far. This also reduced the potential threat of blowing everything up if he totally lost control out of fatigue. 

To himself, he adds,  _ ‘Emotions also play a key part with my powers. Honest, pure emotions make them stronger and easier to use, while complicated conflicting emotions make them weak and harder to control.’  _ Generally, Kyo had reliable control over his demonic abilities. The only exceptions being if he was drugged or badly hurt since the pain or inebriance made it hard to focus. The resulting flurry of conflicting emotions made it difficult for his powers to work effectively. 

The table is silent for a moment as they digest everything Kyo revealed to them. Hopefully, starting to understand that quirks weren’t as all-powerful as they currently believed. That if you studied them enough, they would reveal a glaring vulnerability you could exploit.  _ ‘Come on, get it through your thick skulls. Before you all become Nomu food.’ _

The red-headed ball of sunshine was the first to recover. And just as fate would have it, said the opposite of what Kyo was hoping to drill into their heads. “Well, Kyo’s abilities are manly and all, but I really like Tohru’s Transformation Quirk,” he announced happily. The rest of the table instantly agreeing, causing Kyo to sigh in defeat. He should have known better. Tohru was too adorable for her own good. No wonder everyone was infatuated with her and her powerful abilities. 

“I love Tohru’s quirk!”

“It’s so strong! So unfair!” 

“Did you see how she used it against Momo? I didn’t think another quirk could compare with hers!”

“Oh yeah, that reminds me,” Midoriya interrupted, flipping through his notebook until he found the right page. “Tohru, I know you gave a brief explanation of how you quirk works on the first day of class, but could you elaborate on how you transform other objects? Specifically, how you transformed one of your ribbons into sai during class?”

“Oh well...umm...you see…~” she started clumsily. Her face turning red with everyone’s attention fixed on her suddenly. Her sapphire eyes were jumping from person to person before settling on Kyo’s. He offered her a reassuring smile. The simple action gave her enough support to begin her explanation.

Tohru quickly summarizes her abilities for their classmates. How her “quirk” allows her to turn anything in her immediate vicinity into any form she imagines. Meaning she not only needed to have a vivid imagination but ample knowledge of the new forms physiology to keep up its integrity. Similar to how Momo uses her creation Quirk. For example, if Tohru were to imagine someone with wings, she would need to know the anatomy of the wings and how large to make them to actually get the person off the ground. She would need to understand how the joints move to become airborne, or the wings would crumble under the weight, resulting in a painfully broken form. Because she requires anatomical knowledge to fully make use of her powers, she needs to do extensive research before she can attempt a new transformation safely. To accommodate this, Tohru studied for many years to become a medical ninja.

“As for your earlier question about how I transformed my ribbons into a sai,” Tohru started, as she gently pulled one of the long ribbons from her hair and held one end of it in her hand while letting the other end dangle in the air. “Your statement was actually backward ~.”

Just as she had done during class, she gave the ribbon a little flick where it quickly transformed into a silver sai. After watching the action up close, some of the students noticed the difference. The change was quick but not instantaneous as her transformations usually were. “As some of you just noticed, these ribbons aren’t really ribbons after all. I used my quirk to transform my twin sais’ into ribbons~” she explained with a smile.

“When you transform us into animals, the animal traits carry over. Does that mean the weapon's qualities carry over as well,” Midoriya muttered to himself at lightning speed. It wasn’t clear if he was actually expecting an answer, but Tohru answered him anyways.

“That’s correct~” she cheered, clapping her hands cutely. Making some of the girls giggle. 

“If I turn and inferior object into a superior object. The transformation has a short time limit before it reverts back to its original form. The transformation is also broken if it takes damage~” Tohru explained. When she fights, she will often turn rocks found on a battlefield into kunai or shuriken to attack unsuspecting enemies. Once these make contact, they immediately revert back into rocks. “However, if I transform a superior form, into an inferior one, the transformation can stay in place almost indefinitely. As is the case with my ribbons. Don’t tell sensei, but this allows me to have concealed weapons on my person at all times~.” 

“You can turn anything into a weapon?” Kaminari asked in disbelief.

“Technically, yes, but it doesn’t mean it’ll be that effective as one~.”

“Uhh.. you lost me,” the blonde admitted sheepishly.

“I’ll give you a demonstration,” Kyo offered. He grabbed a flimsy piece of spaghetti from Kaminari’s plate. Ignoring his complaints. “Tohru, if you would.”

“Sure thing~” she replied, clapping her hands and gesturing towards the noodle in her teammate's hands. In the blink of an eye, there was what appeared to be kunai in Kyo’s grip. Without even hesitating, the explosive teen brutally stabs Kaminari’s hand, which rested on the table. A girlish scream escapes the would-be hero until he realizes that he felt no pain. Confused, he looks at his hand to find it completely unharmed, and the kunai had already returned to its flimsy form. Though now, it rested on the table in two pieces. 

“As you can see, if you turn something into a stronger form than the original, the new form can’t hold up for long. The base of its strength stems from its original’s integrity, which is why it broke the second it made contact with your skin. It may look sharp and intimidating, but a flimsy noodle can’t be used to inflict damage.” 

“I guess that makes sense,” Kaminari mused, rubbing the area he was stabbed to convince himself he was fine. “Even if it has that drawback, Tohru’s quirk is still insanely overpowered!” he asserted, followed by more nods of approval. Even Kyo couldn’t argue with that assessment. 

They all begin to talk excitedly about how adorable her quirk was, and it’s battle capabilities. All the attention directed at her quickly overwhelms Tohru causing her to get flustered by all the praise. Resulting in a pair of cat ears to sprout on top of her head without making any hand movements. This, of course, shocks everyone.

“Hey, I thought you needed to clap your hands to activate your quirk?” Uraraka asked, mimicking the hand gesture Tohru often used.

Tohru shakes her head furiously from side to side. Momentarily making herself dizzy from the action. “I clap my hands to focus my attention on my target, but that isn’t what activates them. I only need to imagine something for my powers to activate~” she explains a little dizzy. 

“The clap is to help me slow down my thinking to help me focus on specific targets safely~.”

“Really? That’s so cool!” Kiri exclaimed beside the Kunoichi. “I’d love to have a power where I just have to imagine something, and it comes true!”

“No, kidding!” Kaminari agreed. “Hey Tohru, aren’t you worried that you might accidentally imagine someone--” 

Kyo immediately interrupts the electric user's question by slamming his hands abruptly on the table. Startling everyone and even a few people at different tables. “Meerkat!” he hisses under his breath, a code word for Tohru to stop listening to their conversation by turning herself into that form, which has the ability to turn off their ears at will. A command she obeys instantly. Satisfied that she’s no longer listening, he turns his attention on the sea of confused and concerned faces around him. 

“Listen closely, I want you all to never EVER ask Tohru to imagine something dangerous like that ever again,” the explosive teen ordered in a low dangerous tone. His menacing eyes were staring all of them down, which sent shivers down their spines. All except for Bakugou, who sent his own glare in his direction. “While she’s skilled in the use of her quirk, it only takes a split second to accidentally think something that can never be taken back. Tohru goes to great measures to stay positive to avoid thinking about anything dangerous. So do yourselves a favor and don't ask her to imagine anything like that ever again. It's for your own safety. Understand?”

They all shake their heads obediently. 

“Good,” Kyo mutters back. 

He was pleased that they seemed to take his words to heart, but now the mood was awkward between them. This wouldn’t help them get closer to the class. They needed a fun distraction. Kyo turns to tap Tohru’s shoulder, the signal to inform her that it’s safe for her to turn herself back to normal, but hesitates for a second. An idea suddenly came to mind. Much to everyone's surprise, he gives her a kiss on the cheek instead. 

Tohru is caught off guard. She immediately blushes a deep shade of red, and before anyone can comment, she accidentally turns the entire table into cat hybrids. That’s when all hell broke loose. Everyone starts screaming at them, asking if they’re dating. Kyo smirks at them while wrapping an arm around her, who is still blushing uncontrollably. 

“Of course we are,” he announces, his orange tail swishing behind him mischievously. The awkward tension in the air completely forgotten as they ask about their relationship instead of mulling over how dangerous Tohru’s abilities were. Through the chaos, Kyo notices that Bakugou is just staring at him with a scrutinizing expression on his face. He alone understood what he had done. 

_ ‘Looks like nothing gets past him. Whatever, it’s nothing I can’t handle. Just try me, Hero!’ _

 

 

**_ Bakugou P. O. V.  _ **

Red, orange, and yellow leaves blow lazily in the late November air. The numerous students were bundling themselves tightly within their winter coats to ward off the chilly breeze, as they hastily sought out shelter after the school day had finally come to an end. After the perils they faced during the Heroics and Quikless classes, the rest of Class A’s day was very uneventful. Except for the fact that half the class had to spend it as human-cat hybrids because Tohru was too flustered to release her quirk. 

Bakugou wanted the record to show that their female classmates were entirely to blame for this. As soon as it was revealed that Kyo and Tohru were dating, they all but pounced on her like some poor defenseless lamb. Bombarding her with an endless storm of questions. Demanding that she provide in-depth details about their relationship or  _ “Kyoru”  _ as the girls nauseatingly decided their ship name would be from that moment on. Bakugou, of course, didn’t care. He just wanted to be turned back into something less  _ fluffy,  _ but considering that any comment about them dating turned the poor timid girl into an embarrassed incoherent mess. It didn’t look like that would be happening anytime soon.

In contrast, Kyo seemed to be enjoying the attention of both the overzealous girls and the insanely jealous boys. Either answering questions in extreme detail or poking fun at them by being incredibly vague. All the while, the orange cat ears and tail he sported seemed completely natural on him, considering his mischievous personality. The explosive hero had hoped that Kyo would be able to calm his girlfriend down enough to release her quirk’s effects, but one look at the fanged smirk on his face killed any hope of that. So instead, Bakugou settled for removing him from her side to separate another distraction for her.

“Come on, Copycat,” Bakugou ordered, grabbing onto Kyo’s tail and forcefully started dragging him towards the exit. Ignoring the surprised yowl, he let out or the low growls they morphed into. “You too, Hair-for-Brains.”

The ash-blonde’s right ear flicked in annoyance as he walked back to the dorms in between Kyo and Kirishima. The latter had been a purring mess all day and was continually nuzzling him thanks to the strong cat instincts that infected their bodies along with the new form. It took all of Bakugou’s willpower not to cuddle him back when the redhead was being all cute. He envied Kirishima’s ability to snuggle him all he wanted without getting any strange looks since Kirishima loves everyone. It wasn’t fair. But the frustration Bakugou felt helped him keep up his annoyed appearance. Which was great since his emotions could be easily read through his body language. This quirk couldn't wear off quick enough. 

“Oh come on, it’s not so bad,” the copper-haired teen laughed when he noticed the blonde’s annoyed expression. His laughter increased slightly when Bakugou hissed at him through his slightly sharpened teeth. Kyo rolled his eyes at that and started a conversation with Kirishima instead, “I see you’ve taken to the form. Are you a cat person?”

The redhead immediately grins. “I like all sorts of animals, though I’m more of a dog person to be completely honest,” he admitted with a soft chuckle. It was true. Kirishima had a real soft spot for animals. He even beat Koda in animal trivia a few times on their weekly game nights. “My back up plan if I don’t have what it takes to be a hero is to work at some kind of animal facility.”

“It  _ was _  your backup plan,” Bakugou corrects harshly. His tail was lashing angrily behind him at the redhead’s unconscious statement. “I already told you that you _  are _  going to be a hero, so forget the rest of that crap.” 

Kirishima blinks in surprise. “Oh yeah, thanks, Bakugou. You know I suck at grammar tenses,” he lied behind an anxious smile, which made the ash-blonde’s heart ache. Bakugou didn’t think Kirishima meant to speak in the present tense, but that it slipped out with how lousy he had been feeling lately. Bakugou made a mental note to talk with him later about his growing depression regarding his abilities and qualifications to be a hero. And by  _ “talk,”  _ he means knock some sense into him--literally.

“Ugh, I hate conjugations,” Kyo agreed with his tongue sticking out slightly like he tasted something bitter. He didn’t seem to have noticed the awkwardness the redhead had shown a second before, though Bakugou didn’t think Kyo would care enough to show it if he had. They were still strangers for the most part, after all. “Especially in our English class.”

“I’m surprised you even knew we covered that today with how you slept through half of it,” the ash-blonde grunted. Remembering how the copper-haired teen had passed out almost immediately. His body was forcing him to take a nap after expending so much of his stamina during training. Armed with a doctor’s note that stated Kyo’s sudden naps were an unavoidable side effect of his quirk, Present Mic. couldn’t do anything besides waking him up when his snoring disrupted the rest of the class. 

A pair of orange cat ears lowered slightly in what Bakugou guessed was a combination of embarrassment and anger. “Yeah, well, excuse me if I find sitting in a class all day extremely boring. It’s not my fault that sitting still for long periods puts me to sleep,” he retorted defensively. His body was taking up a casual fighting stance in case anyone wanted to take him on. 

“Whatever,” Bakugou muttered, picking up the pace slightly. Kyo wasn’t the only one who could benefit from a nap. Bakugou’s own stamina was mostly spent after the rigorous day of training, not to mention the energy lost when Recoverygirl forcefully healed his injuries. He couldn’t wait to catch a couple hours of sleep on the couch. 

_ ‘Shit, I forgot that Kyo’s sleeping in my room tonight,’  _ he mentally groans.

However, Bakugou’s plans to find a quiet place to sleep are quickly thrown out the window. The second Kirishima opens the door to the dorms for both of the explosive teens they find themselves face to face with an angry Jirou. Already changed into some casual clothes which consist of a  _ “Dead Kennedys”  _ T-shirt and a pair of torn black jeans. Her arms were crossed against her chest, and her dark purple eyes were staring daggers at Bakugou. 

“Whatever it is, I’m not in the mood,” the ash-blonde warned as soon as he saw her. He stifled a yawn as he attempted to walk past her, but she blocked his path fearlessly. “The fuck?” he asked angrily. Straightening up until he loomed over her threateningly, but she held her ground.

“No way, you need to pay up for earlier,” she insisted in a harsh tone.

This confused the blonde, which only served to make him angrier. “Don’t tell me this is about your damn headphones. I already told you that I was going to clean them up for you later. You’ll get them back tomorrow.”

The purple-haired teen shook her head.“What? No, that’s not what this is about,” Jirou muttered back impatiently. She took a deep breath before continuing, “You made me lose the bet yesterday, so you need to pay up.”

“What are you talking about? Everything happened just like I said it would.”

“Yeah, but Todoroki placed a bet about you also getting detention somehow, and last I checked you did end up getting detention with the rest of them due to that stupid stunt you pulled with this Pycho,” she finished pointing at Kyo.

“Hey, I can hear you both, you know!” The copper-haired shinobi yelled beside the blonde but was ignored. 

“That’s so cheap, we both know that’s not what Icyhot meant. That shouldn’t count as a win!” Bakugou protested. His hands were starting to spark to life. 

“I tried telling that to Ojiro, but he’s siding with Todoroki since his written bet does say  _ “somehow.”  _ You know what a stickler he is for rules,” Jirou sighed in exasperation. Her stance relaxing somewhat now that Bakugou had another target for his rage. “Anyways, I already had to fork over my winnings. Thought I’d give you a heads up.”

Kirishima, who had watched the exchange in confusion, decided to contribute to the conversation for the first time. “Well, I understand why losing a bet due to a technicality would be frustrating. So why were you so mad at Bakugou when we arrived?” he asked curiously. 

“Because,” Jirous began, pointing a finger at the ash-blonde in question. “If I lost the bet, Bakugou promised to make my dinners for a whole month.”

“No way!” the explosive teen snapped. “There’s no way in Hell that I’m doing that over something stupid like this!”

“I agree,” the musician responded, confusing everyone. Effectively shutting down the long list of insults from the ash-blonde before he even began. “Instead, I want you to make my dinners for a week. It’s the least you could do,” she proposed with a grin. 

Bakugou frowned at this while he deliberated his options. He had made a deal with her, and she was willing to lessen it because the technicality was unfair. Bakugou also didn’t want anyone to ever say that he went back on his word. It would ruin his reputation. He also wanted to continue their shared betting on the stupid shit their class did because it helped improve his deduction skills, which he could use in the future. Bakugou refused to spend his own money on something so childish. But mostly, Bakugou wanted to continue to be on good terms with Jirou. They had gotten a lot closer during their band sessions, and she’d wormed herself into his friend group through him and Dunceface. Bakugou would never hear the end of it from the rest of the losers if he did something to chase her off. 

_ ‘It does seem fair,’  _ the ash-blonde thought begrudgingly to himself. He was just about to accept Jirou’s request when CarrotTop spoke up. 

“Why don’t I cook your meals instead?” Kyo offered out of the blue. The random suggestion caught everyone off guard. “From what I gather, it is kind of my fault you lost the bet. So how about it? I’m a pretty good cook if I do say so myself.”

“That’s true!~” a sing-song voice agreed behind them. They didn’t have to turn to know it was Tohru--they’d be able to pick out her unique cadence from anywhere-- but they did so anyway. Sure enough there she was with Uraraka and the rest of the Bakusquad. “He’s an amazing cook~” she finished happily with a little clap that turned all their bodies back to normal. 

Bakugou breathed a sigh of relief when he felt his cat instincts fade away into nothing. In its place, a sudden wave of competitiveness washed over him with the declaration of Kyo’s incredible cooking skills. Before he even realizes what he’s doing, Bakugou has his fist balled up in the front of Kyo’s shirt. 

“You and me, compete to see who’s food is the best. Right now!” Bakugou ordered sternly, giving the coppered-haired teen in his grasp a good shake.

“You’re on!” Kyo smirked after the initial shock wore off. 

Kaminari and Sero immediately perk up from where they stood in the dorm doorway. “OMG, it’s a Food War!” they both exclaimed at the top of their lungs. 

It was a little over a month ago when the Bakusquad was obsessed with the overly competitive cooking show, even managing to peak Bakugou’s interest with the creative recipes. Dishes that Bakugou actually worked very hard to recreate much to the dorms wonder. It was a blessed time for everyone since even the rejects were terrific. But alas, it wouldn’t last. Eventually, they had to stop because the whole class went broke trying to keep Bakugou’s “Purgatory Canteen,” in business. It only took three seconds for the rest of the class to gather outside the kitchen after the Bakusquad’s excited cry. Everyone hoping to snack on the results. 

“We need three judges quick!” Mina announced over the chorus of growling stomachs. Already taking her place as the announcer for this new class competition. Everyone’s hands instantly shoot up. Some were pushing others out of the way in their desperate attempt to taste the delicious food they knew was coming. There were no such things as friends when it came to the rare chance of eating Bakugou’s cooking. A privilege that rarely extended past those outside of the ash-blonde's exclusive friend group.

“Tohru, do you want to be a judge?” Kiri asked the poor shy girl getting shoved to the back of the group. Holding a hand out to her and pulling her to safety beside him.

“No significant others, that’s cheating!” Bakugou snarls, only to pause awkwardly when he realizes what he just said. No one seemed to notice, though the redhead slowly puts his hand down with a pout.  _ ‘I’m going to pay for that later…’ _

“Oh, Tohru!” Kyo began excitedly as if just remembering she was there. He quickly pushed others out of his way to stand beside his girlfriend. Gently taking one of her hands in his when he made it by her side. “You should compete too! Your cooking is even better than mine,” he purred lovingly. It was absolutely sickening. 

Bakugou wasn’t sure if it was the thought that someone else could compete with him in something he took great pride in, or if he was jealous of the open display of affection Kyo showed to Tohru, but he found himself whirling angrily towards the girl. Dark shadows hiding his eyes from view as he towered over her, which earned him a startled yelp. The timid girl was curling in on herself to make herself seem smaller. The submissive action from such a formidable adversary ticked him off for reasons he couldn’t quite place. 

“Ribbons, you’re competing too. I’ll crush you both under my foot,” he declared in his usual threatening tone, but the action was slightly underplayed when he gently dropped an apron from the supply closet in her hands. 

She blinks at the light pink material of Uraraka’s apron for a moment before meeting his gaze. After a couple of seconds, the confusion melts away, leaving her face bright and cheerful. “Mvto! Uh, I mean, thank you, Bakugou!~” she thanked him in the same accent as the twins. Ribbons then shoots him a genuine smile, one that reminded him of Kirishima for a split second.

Bakugou  _ tsked _  at her before making his way to the kitchen to set up. He didn’t trust anyone but Big Lips in the kitchen since everyone else was utterly useless. They couldn’t even label ingredients right half of the time. All Might help them if Kaminari was on kitchen duty that week. That idiot loved to relabel things as memes. 

As Bakugou takes ingredients out of the refrigerator and pantry, he hears his redheaded friend congratulate the brunette on being included in the competition. His tone is exceptionally cheerful. Nothing like the downtrodden way he spoke about his qualifications of being a hero not but 20 minutes ago.  _ ‘ _

_ I guess if their presence here makes Kiri happy, I can try to play nice with them as well,’  _ the ash-blonde muttered to himself.

 

**_ Kirishima P. O. V.  _ **

After much debating, a couple heated fights and a high stakes game of rock, paper scissors later, it was eventually decided that Jirou should pick the other two judges of the competition. It was only fair since all this came about to determine who would be making her meals for the next week. Her first choice was a no-brainer. It was her closest friend Momo, though Jirou stated it was because she was a good food critic thanks to her prestigious upbringing. Though not even Kiri believed that blatant lie. Jirou’s second choice was Tsubasa in an attempt to have fair representation amongst the judges by having one of their new classmates on the panel. 

 

Together they came up with a challenge for the three contestants to follow as they complete their dishes. First, they had an hour to make a dish with the limited ingredients found in their kitchen. Second, they had to plate three identical dishes for each of the judges, which had to be delivered at the same time. Third, they couldn’t hinder or aid anyone else in the competition. 

“Does everyone understand the rules?” Mina asked the three contestants with one of the karaoke mics. All three of them nodded, their eyes shining with determination. “Then you may begin!” she announced, while Kaminari sounded a sports air horn. 

Bakugou and Kyo immediately bolted for the table with all the ingredients, while Tohru follows them at a reasonable pace. The ash-blonde quickly grabbing most of the chicken, a jar of his premade curry paste, and a few other odds and ends. Kirishima’s mouth was already watering, knowing that curry was one of Bakugou’s best dishes. However, he hoped the ash-blonde remembered that the judges won’t be able to handle his usual level of spiciness. 

The copper-haired teen went straight for the whole salmon, a few vegetables, and a bag of rice.  _ ‘Uh, does he know that hasn’t been gutted yet?’  _ Kirishima thought to himself from where he stood watching in the kitchen doorway. Before he could voice his concerns, the shinobi slammed the fish down and began carving the salmon with impressive precision. Expertly removing the gills, head, fins, tail, and removed the slimy innards in a few swift movements. With a couple more flicks of the knife, he filleted it with ease. However, instead of putting it on a pan to fry it or put it in the oven to bake, Kyo just left it on the cutting board and made his way out of the kitchen.

“Where the hell do you think you’re going?” Bakugou yelled, pausing with his own cooking. There was a frying pan in one hand and a sharp knife in the other, which made him even more fearsome than usual. 

“Don’t worry about it. I just need to do some meal prep is all,” Kyo explained vaguely. Casually waving off Bakugou’s concerns. 

He walked past the crowd of confused students to go out in the courtyard. 21 pairs of curious eyes watched him through the courtyard windows to see him walk to a tree and immediately start removing branches. With a kunai, he quickly began to carve off the outside bark and created a long vertical split down the middle of them before returning inside. Only to walk back outside again with his two large fillets of salmon.

After a few minutes, Kyo had managed to secure them to the two long stakes he had made by attaching the fillets vertically within the split he created. The salmon was kept steady by wedging chopsticks he had stolen from the kitchen horizontally within the fissure. The stakes were then planted within the dorm fire pit at a 45-degree angle; to smoke over the fire, Kyo had managed to create by sparking the logs already in the hole with his quirk and fanning them to life. He then casually strolled back inside to begin one of his sides. Winking at a scowling Bakugou as he did so.

Kirishima noted that while Bakugou looked irritated, he continued to work in silence. No doubt determined to beat the shinobi in his second favorite past time. The redhead watched Bakugou’s agile fingers skillfully chopping an assortment of peppers and other vegetables for his curry. Judging from the smell wafting from the kitchen, his premade curry paste was already simmering nicely in the wok. The judges are lucky that Bakugou rarely puts the spiciest ingredients in his premade paste since that tends to dull the flavor over time. 

An adoring smile spread across Kirishima’s face as he watched his favorite person work. It appeared that Bakugou was pulling out all the stops for this dish. He usually didn’t bother going to such lengths with his cooking unless it was a special occasion, or he had an especially hard day. Something not even the other members of their friend group knew. The ash-blonde might complain about cooking for others or try to get out of it whenever he could, but Kirishima knew that he actually enjoyed cooking for people. Bakugou desperately craved for others to acknowledge his accomplishments in everything he did. So if he wasn’t getting it in his heroics training, Bakugou would cook food for whoever was in the lounge in hopes of gaining some praise from them. His crimson eyes always brightened when someone said it was delicious even if the scowl on his face said otherwise. After the embarrassing loss, their class suffered today Bakugou needed this win to not only validate himself but his fellow classmates as well. 

The sound of something sizzling loudly stole his attention. Kirishima turns his head towards the rapid popping to seen Tohru frying something in a pan beside Bakugou. Her tiny frame almost completely hidden behind Bakugou’s broad shoulders. Tohru tended to keep to herself, so her quiet presence was easily overshadowed by the two explosive teens crazy antics earlier. Kirishima felt a pang of guilt for momentarily forgetting about his new friend. Still, after seeing her cute little face scrunched up in concentration in such an adorable fashion, those feelings melted away. 

_ ‘Maybe it was for the best. Tohru tends to get stage fright when people are watching.’  _

The brunette was humming a song under her breath as she cooked. Her head bobbing ever so slightly to the rhythm every now and then. It was an adorable melody, and Kirishima wished he knew what song it was. He noticed Bakugou give her a few quizzical looks, but let her be. All the while, she carried on completely oblivious. Too focused on her task to pay any attention to her surroundings. It never ceased to baffle the redhead how different she acted when she wasn’t in full battle mode. It was difficult to believe that the adorable girl humming in a frilly pink apron was the same person running circles around them during class. 

_ ‘There’s a lot more to these guys than I originally thought,’  _ Kirishima mused to himself as he watched the contestants cook for the remainder of the competition. 

 

 

“And that’s time, utensils down!” Mina exclaimed into her karaoke mic after an hour had passed. She held a muted yellow box with the number 800 written on it, the same one she used for the Best Room Competition, and reached a hand inside. “Alright, everybody! Without further ado, I will now reveal who will present their dish first in the First-Ever Best Food Dish Competition! Drumroll, please!” 

Kirishima did the honors of playing a short drum solo on one of the Guitar Hero drums. A few other students joined in by drumming their hands on their legs or nearby objects. With a small giggle, the pinkette unfolded one of the pieces of paper. “Looks like you’re up, Blasty!” 

“If I’m going first, then we might as well not even bother judging the rest of these losers because my dish is going to annihilate the competition,” Bakugou smirked as he expertly carried six plates from the kitchen. The wondrous smell of his curry wafting behind him as he pushed his way past the crowd made everyone’s stomachs growl. As he passed, Bakugou handed a plate to Mina, Kirishima, and another dish for Kaminari and Sero to share, before setting the remaining plates in front of the three judges. A not so subtle  _ fuck you  _ to the rest of the class who hadn’t earned a place in Bakugou’s small group of friends. The envious muttering heard from the crowd only served to widen Bakugou’s smirk as he stared down the judges who sat in a line at one of the tables. His posture was perfectly relaxed as he stood confidently before them. “Bon appetit, Motherfuckers.”

Jirou didn’t take much offense to the ash-blonde’s words. She had more or less gotten used to his way of speech along time ago, but the other two looked less than amused by it. Regardless, they each picked up their utensils and took their first bites. Kirishima followed their example. Taking a moment to blow on a piece of chicken before biting into it hungrily. A blast of flavor immediately filled his mouth. ‘ _ This is the best thing I’ve ever eaten!’  _ he practically moaned.

Bakugou had made a milder version of his Katsu Curry or  _ “Victory Curry”  _ as Bakugou called it.  _ ‘Bakugou sure loves puns,’  _ Kirishima laughs to himself, knowing full well that was one of the reasons for picking this dish since it played off of Katsuki and his need to triumph over Kyo and Tohru in this competition. It featured a crisp fried chicken cutlet served on a bed of rice and doused in his thick, bright orange curry sauce. He was delighted to know that the sauce was reasonably spicy, nowhere near its full potency. Instead of pickled horseradish, Bakugou served thinly chopped green, red, and orange peppers on the side as well as mixing them into the sauce, which enhanced the flavors with each bite. Truly one of his best dishes so far. Though if he was completely honest, Kirishima missed the spiciness it usually had. It was designed to feel like you were dying every time you ate it, but you always felt like you could accomplish anything you set your mind to after eating Bakugou’s Katsu Curry. 

“OMG This is amazing!” Mina praised cheerfully, sharing her plate with Uraraka and Tsu. She momentarily handed her plate off to them to continue with her announcing. “What do our judges think? Remember to score the dish from 1-10 after your feedback,”

“Your cooking was astounding as always, Bakugou,” Yaoyorozu praised wholeheartedly. “The way you’ve matched the flavors and tailored your dish to the judges was marvelous. I give it a 10.”

“Damn right, it is,” the ash-blonde agreed shamelessly. 

Jirou rolled her dark purple eyes. “Yeah, yeah, we get that you’re full of yourself, Hotshot,” sassed the Hearing Hero. She took another bite of her food before continuing with her assessment. “I agree with Momo, you really stepped up your game for this, but I’m only going to give you a 9.”

To Bakugou’s credit, he didn’t explode immediately. He showed excellent character growth by holding his anger back....for 5 seconds before exploding. “WHAT THE HELL EARS?!” He boomed, slamming his hands on the table. The sparks coming off of his hands stained the pretty white tablecloth they decorated the judge's table with dark, grimy scorch marks. His teeth were grinding together violently as he held back the string of insults he wanted to sling at his friend, but better judgment kept his mouth clamped shut. 

“Your food was great, don't get me wrong, it just felt a little off this time around. Call me crazy, but when I eat your curry, I expect to cry my eyes out. It just lacked its usual  _ Bakugouness _ ,” she explained as nonchalantly as she could, though there was a hint of a smile on her face. Her words were so sweet that it actually brought manly tears to Kirishima’s eyes at the realization that someone else noticed the missing element to Bakugou’s meal. 

Bakugou’s expression was unreadable as he studied her face. “Tsk, whatever,” he finally replied, crossing his arms defensively. The explosive hero turned towards the final judge. “Well, give me your verdict Birdbrain,” Bakugou prompted, his finger tapping on his crossed arm impatiently. 

Tsubasa shifted in his seat. “Your food was excellent, Bakugou,” the brunette began with a kind smile. “I see now that you usually prefer to make a spicier curry, but decided to tone it down for us. That explains why you mixed peppers into the sauce as well as place them on the side to ensure everyone can have the level of spiciness they prefer. Unfortunately, I’m going to have to side with Jirou. I prefer a spicier curry, so I’m going to reward you with a score of 9 as well.” 

The winged student hadn’t even finished speaking before Bakugou turned and kicked a nearby chair over. “I FUCKING TOLD YOU ALL WERE WEAKLINGS!!” Bakugou shouted at the rest of the class. 

While class A pales at the blonde’s display, Mina just laughs it off. “Looks like Blasty earned himself a total score of 28. Now for the next contender!” Mina announces, holding her yellow box to the nearest classmate, who happened to be Todoroki.

The dual quirk user reached into the box unenthusiastically. “Kyo,” he stated flatly. Complete and utter disinterest reflecting in his bicolored eyes. 

“About time!” the copper-haired teen called from somewhere in the kitchen. A moment later, he appeared with the three plates for the judges. As well as a long wooden board, he had balanced on top of his head. It was quite an impressive sight to behold, but Iida immediately offered to hold it for him just in case he tripped to avoid unnecessary messes. Kirishima didn’t think that was likely, but the sentiment was sweet nonetheless. Kyo must have felt the same because he allowed the class president to take the board from his head and carry it for him as he set the plates in his hands in front of the judges. After which he took the board from Iida and placed it on a nearby table. “My dish is smoked salmon with a huckleberry marinade and a creamy parmesan spinach orzo. Everyone dig in, I made enough for everyone to try.”

Intrigued, Kirishima walked over to the other table to grab a small serving of Kyo’s food. After the shinobi’s bizarre behavior in the courtyard, he and many of their classmates were already curious to try the salmon he prepared. The small paper bowl the food was placed in was warm to the touch. A testament to how hot the food inside still remained. The redhead gave it a couple blows to cool the food off enough to eat. As he did wafts of delicious new scents tickled his nose. This combination of food was entirely new for him, and Kirishima had no idea how the flavors will sit with his established tastes. 

‘ _ Were these common foods at Binoshi?’  _ he wondered absently as he took his first bite.

The first bite was like nothing he’d ever tried before. The salmon was cooked perfectly, making the fish incredibly tender. The redhead thought the smokiness of the salmon would be overwhelming, but the sweetness of the Huckleberry sauce balanced it out perfectly. It was delightful. And that was impressive considering Kirishima usually didn’t like fish. It was the least manly of the meat category. The orzo, however, was a bit much for Kirishima’s simple tastes. It was delightfully creamy and subtly cheesy with pieces of spinach mixed in to make it a little healthier. It actually paired very well with smoked salmon, but Kirishima preferred regular white rice over this fancy side. Though that was only his opinion. 

Mina, on the other hand, had scarfed her helping of orzo down instantly. “Wow, that rice is the best! What do our judges think of Kyo’s meal?”

The vice-president raises her hand to speak first. “Actually, that isn’t rice. I believe it to be Orzo, which is a small rice-shaped pasta,” Momo gently corrected her friend. She then gently placed the hands on the table in front of her. Careful to keep her elbows off the table since that would be considered bad manners. 

“The meal was wonderful, and I agree with Ashido that your side was exquisite. However, I didn’t care for the smokiness of the salmon or the barbour--” she momentarily trailed off before finding a polite way of stating her point, “for the use of force shown to the poor trees in the courtyard. I’m going to give your dish a 7,”

Kyo stewed in his disappointment silently. The ball of sunshine half expected to at least feel the room’s temperature spike with the activation of his quirk, but nothing happened. The shinobi simply nodded and turned to the next judge.

“Well, I liked it a lot,” Jirou praised casually. “I give it a 9.”

“What kind of explanation was that?” Kaminari complained on the sidelines. 

She shrugged. “Hey, I’m not a food critic. I don’t know how flavors are supposed to go together. I just know what I like and what I don’t.”

“Then why not give it a 10?” Uraraka asked curiously.

“I feel like a perfect score should be saved for the best thing I’ve ever tasted, and this wasn’t it.”

“Makes sense,” the acid hero agreed. She turned her attention to the final judge. “What do you think of your brother’s food?”

On the sidelines, Kirishima overheard Kaminari whisper to Sero, “That’s kind of cheating. You know he’s going to give his twin brother a great score.”

“I give it an 8. The orzo’s slightly overdone,” The brunette stated bluntly.

“Or not…” Sero whispered back under his breath. 

That’s when Kyo finally lost it. “Well, who asked you!” he roared at his brother. His thunderous voice was shaking the plates still on the table.

“Well, I am a judge for this competition,” Tsubasa reminded, his tone slightly bitter. This only made his brother angrier, which caused him to yell even more. Everyone joked that Kyo was another Bakugou, but his personality always came off as more mischievous than short-tempered. That was until now. Seeing him lose his temper and shout at his brother was like watching Bakugou yell at Deku.

“That gives Kyo a total score of 24, which puts him behind Bakugou’s current score of 28 points!” Mina summarized. Her voice was struggling to stay above Kyo’s yelling. “Our final contestant will be miss Tohru!~” she announced, adopting the kunoichi’s adorable way of speaking for her intro. The copper-haired shinobi’s yelling finally trailing off.

“Coming!~” called a sweet voice from the kitchen. A few seconds later, Tohru is seen exiting the kitchen with a rolling cart. The redhead was immediately relieved to know that she wasn’t attempting to carry her meal in a showy manner like the two explosive teens. Especially when he saw that she had prepared some kind of soup. The cart was decorated with a matching tablecloth to the judges' table. On top were three bowls for the judges, a large pot, and a stack of bowls for the rest of the class. Tohru gently set the three bowls in front of the judges before starting to dish up the rest of the class herself. 

“My meal might not be as fancy as you're used to, but I hope you enjoy it. This Kitsune Udon is one of my favorite comfort foods~” she explained as she handed a small bowl to Kirishima.

The Udon was everything you would expect from Tohru. It was absolutely adorable. Kitsune Udon usually is a noodle soup with a dashi broth, topped with seasoned fried tofu, narutomaki fish cake, and scallions. Typically, the most pleasing feature is that the fried tofu on top resembles the bright orange coloring of a fox’s coat. Tohru, however, took it a step further in her presentation. She cut the tofu into the shape of a fox and added more vegetables, which she cut to resemble flowers. The bright colors were breathtaking, which made the comforting dish even more so.

Kirishima wrapped his hands even tighter around the small ceramic bowl. The warmth was seeping into his cold fingers pleasantly. With his chopsticks, he regretfully broke a piece off of Tohru’s kitsune shaped tofu. Steam immediately seeped from the opening, which made his mouth water.  _ ‘Mmmm, this is sooo good!’  _ the redhead though as he munched on it happily. Next, he grabbed a few of the noodles. They were thick, spongy, and soaked the broth perfectly. He made quick work of them, and before he knew it, only the broth remained. Kirishima tipped the bowl back, making sure to drink every last drop. The broth was warming him up as it slid down his throat. You could taste and feel all the love she poured into the dish with each sip. A chorus of satisfying sighs filled the room as everyone else finished the udon at the same time as him. The wonderful soup hit the spot on such a cold afternoon. 

“So judges, what are your thoughts?” Mina asked, steam still escaping from her mouth. 

“Your udon was amazing Tohru. I give it a 9,” Jirou praised.

Tohru’s face brightened, and her sapphire eyes sparkled. “Thank you so much!~” she thanked happily.

“Your food was excellent as always Tohru,” Tsubasa announced. “That’s a 10 for me.”

“Mvto! Thank you!~” she thanked with a bow.

All eyes turned to Momo. It was anyone’s guess what she would score. The rich girl had very refined tastes, which often baffled her classmates. Even Bakugou had trouble tailoring to her sometimes since the littlest things could turn her off to something. Momo didn’t tend to like more straightforward dishes since that’s not what she was accustomed to growing up. 

The Creation Hero took another sip of the broth with her spoon before answering, “Honda-san, I thought your Udon was surprisingly delightful. It could have benefited with more tofu if you’re going to remove some for the design. Regardless, I will reward you with 9 points.”

“Thank you so much, Yaoyorozu~” the kunoichi replied with a bow. “And please call me Tohru~” she finished with a heartwarming smile. It seemed she had forgiven the vice-president for her comment in Homeroom. 

A small blush colored the vice-president’s cheeks. “I-I will do my best to honor your request,” she stammered quietly. 

“That gives Tohru a total score of 28, which means...wait,” Mina began realizing the flaw in her rules. “Bakugou and Tohru are tied. What are we supposed to do now?!”

A massive explosion shakes the room. Clattering dishes and utensils on the tables. “Just have them rescore it or get someone else to be the tie-breaking vote for the finalists,” Bakugou roared impatiently. 

Before anyone could comment on that, a voice behind them steals their attention. “What seems to be the commotion here?” their homeroom teacher asked impatiently. He had a stack of papers under one arm and his famous yellow sleeping bag under the other. Trailing behind him was little Eri who must have just been picked up from her school lessons with Mandalay and Kota. Even though Eri was a year older than him, she missed a lot of schooling because of how she was used as a test subject. So it was ulitmately decided she would have several lessons a week with the Wild Wild Pusy cats along with Kota to get her caught up. Having three Pro-heroes keep her safe also gave Aizawa some peace of mind when she wasn’t at UA. 

“Someone answer before I lose my patience,” the Eraser Hero ordered impatiently. 

“Apologies, sensei. We were in the midst of a cooking competition to raise moral. We will be sure to clean everything up before bed!” Iida immediately explained, saving the rest of the class from their nerves. 

“A cooking competition?” Aizawa asked, confused. As far as he knew, only Bakugou and Sato were competent in the kitchen. And no offense to Sato, but he would never challenge the beast of class A out of fear for his own safety. The rest of the class couldn’t even be trusted to boil water without the sprinklers going off. The teacher turned his tired eyes to the still fuming blonde. “Someone actually beat you?”

“NO!” Bakugou spat, crossing his arms.

“Well, it ended in a tie between Bakugou and Tohru. We’re trying to come up with a tiebreaker right now,” Deku corrected apprehensively. Flinching slightly when Bakugou’s fiery gaze snapped toward him. 

“Just clean up after yourselves and keep the volume to a minimum. I have a lot of grading to do,” Aizawa started, heading towards his office. “Someone get Eri something other than Bakugou’s curry to eat for dinner.”

“Wait, sensei!” Uraraka called after him, causing him to look over his shoulder. “Would you like to be the tie-breaking vote! We promise you’ll like it,” she finished with a heartwarming smile. 

“That’s a great idea! Please, Aizawa-sensei!” Mina pleaded, followed by other classmates.

A tiny hand tentatively grabbed hold of his black pants. “Please, it sounds like fun,” Eri asked sweetly.

It was all over then. Eri's little plea was the last blow needed to persuade him to join in their shenanigans. He reluctantly allowed Uraraka and Mina to drag him to a table while Eri followed closely behind him. That’s how the Eraser Hero found himself seated at a table with the finalist’s dishes placed before him. 

Kirishima wasn’t sure Aizawa was the best choice to make the final decision since Eraser Head didn’t believe in food. He believed in  _ efficiency. _  The redhead recalled the time he had a talk with Aizawa in his office during lunch after the bed wrecking incident. Kirishima had watched his teacher take juice box after juice box from his little minifridge in the corner instead of eating a typical lunch. When Kirishima commented on it, Aizawa simply stated that he didn’t see the logic in going out of his way to prepare food for himself or ordering food when it took a ridiculous amount of time to do so. The teacher had then pointed to his juice box, which turned out to really be soylent. A complete liquid meal that contains the vitamins and nutrients the body needs. It was as healthy and affordable as it was bland. He ordered the drinks in ridiculous quantities at a time and kept them in his mini-fridge for safekeeping. Aizawa had given him one at the end of their meeting. Curious Kirishima took a small sip and immediately threw up in the nearby trash can.  _ ‘ _

_ Tasted like gutter water,’  _ Kirishima grimace to himself, sticking his tongue out with the memory.  _ ‘Clearly the work of villains.’ _

All eyes were on their teacher. He didn’t need to score them. He only had to decide which one was better. Everyone held their breaths as he started with Bakugou’s curry. The Eraser Hero’s face was unreadable as he slowly sampled the chicken cutlet, curry sauce, and rice. Without a word, he moved on to Tohru’s udon. First, trying the kitsune shaped tofu before moving on to the vegetables, noodles, and broth. He had actually eaten a decent amount of both dishes, but his favorite was apparent when he poured an extra helping of udon and set it in front of Eri, who sat beside him. 

“Both meals were delicious, but I’m going to grant the win to Tohru. Both of your skills were equal, but she outshined you in creativity. Presentation is an important factor in everything you do. Don’t forget that Bakugou.” 

Bakugou clenched his fists at his sides but gave a single nod to his teacher. While the rest of the class congratulated Tohru for her win, Kirishima made his way to his friends' side. “I thought your food was amazing, Bakugou!” the redhead praised. Shooting his grumpy friend with his best grin. 

“Whatever,” was his only response. 

Kirishima’s expression fell slightly. Unable to think of something to lift his spirits with yet another loss at the hands of the shinobi.

“Don’t let the loss get you down. Tohru needs a vivid imagination to use her quirk, so that translates to her being super creative in everything she does. Of course, we lost to someone like her,” Kyo cuts in beside the duo. By his tone, it was clear he was trying to cheer the ash-blonde up. In his hands was a bowl of udon, which he slurped up nonchalantly. “If it makes you feel better, you kicked my ass in the competition, which was the whole point, right?”

That realization managed to make Bakugou’s lips twitch upwards for a second. “Yeah, whatever,” he muttered. 

“Oh yeah, since neither of you won the competition, does that mean Tohru has to make Jirou’s dinners for a week?” Kirishima wondered allowed. “That’s not really fair. If I recall, you both forced her to join at the last minute.”

“Serves her right for winning then,” Bakugou smirked smugly. Like he wasn’t trying to win with everything he had. 

“I agree, while I like your cooking Tohru, I wouldn’t want to force you took cook for me for something these Hotheads decided,” Jirou agreed, already helping to clean up the mess they created. 

“I don’t mind~” the brunette assured. Tohru's hands were stacked high with empty bowls used for her udon. “I forgot how much I enjoyed cooking for large groups. I had already decided to make dinner for the dorms while I was here if that’s alright with everyone~.”

“You mean it!” Mina asked, grabbing onto her arm. “That would be amazing!”

“U-uh, sure. As long as you’d like me to, that is~” Tohru replied. To Jirou, she added, “Just tell me what you’d like for the next week, and I’ll make it for everyone. After that, I’ll take suggestions from the class~.”

“Are you sure, Tohru? Won’t that be a lot of work?” Kirishima asked, concerned. They already had so much going on this term, and the shinobi were acting as part-time instructors. He didn’t want her to spread herself thin. 

The kunoichi flashed him a bright smile. Her kind eyes were sparkling with nothing but joy and affection. “Of course, you can count on me!~” Tohru cheered, bringing one of her hands up to salute her friend. However, the action jostled the tall stack of ceramic bowls in her other hand. She immediately brought her other hand back to the wobbling tower to regain its integrity, but a few dishes had already fallen from the top. Kyo, Bakugou, and Kirishima instantly grabbed the falling bowls before they could shatter on the ground. Her face turned an impressive shade of red before she mumbled an apology.

“Well, let us know if you need any help, alright,” Kirishima replied, taking some of the bowls from her grasp to lighten her load. “Maybe you can manage to make Aizawa eat something besides that nasty soylent he’s always slurping down.” 

The class laughs at that as they all start to clean up the mess they had made from another one of their random contests. Kirishima even managed to wrangle Kyo and Bakugou into help cleaning by making it into a game to see who could put away the most dishes. He had meant it as a joke, but the shinobi had taken him seriously. A few taunts later and the Explosive Hero was joining in as well. 

The competition was intense, but Bakugou managed to come out on top. Though Kaminari wondered if Kyo had let him win. Kirishima didn’t think so. He had been keeping up with Bakugou until he had passed out from pushing his body too far, which secured Bakugou the win. When the copper-haired teen was roused 30 minutes later, he was absolutely livid and challenged the ash-blonde to another contest. This continued for the next hour until Shinsou finally had enough and used his quirk to force them both to go to sleep. They both slept on the couch that night. And that was how the two explosive teens became fast friends. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can you tell that I'm excited for the next season of Food Wars! In case you were wondering, Food Wars is just a competitive cooking show like Gordon Ramsay's Hells Kitchen in this world instead of an anime. I didn't think Bakugou would like the absurd renderings of people eating food. Another fun fact, Kyo's meal was the traditional way to cook salmon in the northwest Tribes where I'm currently living. If you couldn't tell, I've done it since I was a kid. So the Hitsuzen twins will exhibit a lot of tribal knowledge from the language the speak (Mvskoke) to their favorite foods.
> 
> I apologize if you felt this was a filler chapter. I felt another chapter was needed to establish everyone's personalities and where they fall in the class. The plot will begin moving forward from this point on. 
> 
> Like always, I hope you're enjoying the story so far and I hope you continue to keep reading.


	8. It Started With A Headband

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The new students have melded into their class rather easily. It had only been three weeks since they transferred to UA, but it was hard to imagine the class without them. However, a dangerous secret threatens to jeopardize the shinobi's mission.

 

 

 

**_Bakugou P. O. V._ **

 

 

**_Pant...Pant...Pant…_ **

 

Came Bakugou’s labored breathing as he sat cross-legged on the dusty ground in nothing but a tank top and sweatpants. The only light he could see; filtering through the dark fabric tied tightly around his eyes. His abused muscles sore and beginning to cramp up from sitting for so long. The air was stale and unreasonably humid, causing him to sweat profusely. Especially from his head and hands. What he wouldn’t give for a drink of water to soothe his barren throat. Despite his best efforts, strands of his sweat-soaked hair clung to his face uncomfortably. The resulting moisture had sealed the crack that he had managed to create underneath his eye when he had been forcibly blindfolded. Effectively darkening his world once more. 

Instead of sight, he was forced to rely on his hearing to discern his surroundings. A feat made incredibly tricky thanks to the  **_thump...thump...thumping_   **of his own steadily increasing heartbeat. A rhythm that echoed painfully in his ears. Bakugou’s worsening tinnitus already making the sounds of people moving around him muffled and distorted. 

He struggled to keep his breath at a reasonable level as fear slowly started to overtake him. Bakugou gritted his teeth around the cloth gag in his mouth to prevent his breath from hitching as his panic continued to rise. The fabric already soaked through from a combination of sweat and saliva. The sweet smell of nitroglycerin making his stomach turn with the thought that a single spark could light his entire body on fire. His hands instinctively pulled at the heavy restraints clasping his arms tightly behind his back in a combination of anger and desperation. With how tender his wrists felt, he knew they were already heavily bruised. 

A hand roughly messes up his hair before disappearing again. Bakugou shakes his head violently from side to side to hide the involuntary flinch of his body from the unexpected physical contact. A low growl resonating deep within the ash-blonde’s throat as he tried to act fearsome to hide the fact that he was on the verge of succumbing to his own anxieties. His violently trembling hands fumbling to unlock the cuffs with the lock pick he had hidden in his combat boots.

As Bakugou attempted to unlock his shackles, memories of every time he had ever been restrained against his will played through his mind. How he was almost smothered by the sludge villain, getting chained up at the Sports Festival, being shoved into a capsule, Dabi pulling him back through the warp gate, being chained to yet another chair and waterboarded by that compress villain for three days straight. Bakugou’s thoughts started to go fuzzy then. The continuous wave of coldness that had been washing over his body suddenly overwhelming his senses. His head slowly beginning to lull backward as he became lightheaded from his irregular breathing.  

 _‘I can’t breathe…’_ the ash-blonde thought drowsily.  _‘... I… can’t…’_

 **_...click…_ ** 

The sound of his restraints unlocking snapped him back to reality. Giving his mind one moment of clarity. Without hesitating, Bakugou immediately tore the cuffs off of his wrist with a ferocious yell. Once his hands were free, he jumped to his feet while ripping the blindfold and gag from his face. His body instantly falling into his usual fighting stance after quickly wiping the excess sweat from his palms. Sparks already flickering to life, ready to take anyone on. The blinding light only a momentary inconvenience to him. 

“Come at me!” the explosive teen challenged to no one in particular. 

Bakugou felt a hand rest on his shoulder. Still blinded, he acted out of reflex. He grabbed hold of the hand and twisted it painfully back to subdue his foe. Then in one fluid movement, slammed them into the nearby wall, pinning them painfully against it with his body weight. 

“Dude, I surrender!” a familiar voice cried. 

Scowling, Bakugou blinked the rest of the light out of his eyes to see Kaminari pinned within his grip.  _‘That’s right. I’m in class right now…’_ Bakugou recalled absently. 

His crimson eyes scan the rest of the room, ignoring the squirming form of his friend pinned under him. The majority of his class was still sitting on the ground in small groups. Trying their best to escape from various different restraints. All of them stripped down to the barest forms of their P.E. clothing while Kyo and Todoroki used their quirks to simulate extreme temperatures for them to endure as they competed for the difficult task at hand.  _‘That explains why it’s so god damn hot,’_ The ash-blonde thought wiping sweat from his brow with the back of his hand. 

 _‘Shit, half the class is already free…’_ Bakugou realized glumly after a brief headcount. Pushing himself off of Kaminari.  _‘Did they notice my panic attack? No, it doesn’t look like it.’_

The electric user breathes a sigh of relief as he assessed the minimal damage to his shoulder by rotating it slowly. “Damn dude, I didn’t think you would’ve known it was me who ruffled your hair. What gave me away?”

“Everyone else is still handcuffed moron,” Bakugou lied half-heartedly. The truth was that he hadn’t known. The triggering experience had made him momentarily forget that he was doing a quirkless activity due to his panic attack. The explosive hero had just acted on instinct by attacking the first person who touched him. Bakugou didn’t want to think about what could have happened if he hadn’t snapped out of it when he did. 

“Tell Aizawa I went to get some water,” the explosive hero called to his friend as he made his way out of the gym for some fresh air. He needed a few seconds to compose himself away from prying eyes. 

Bakugou flipped Kyo off as he passed; his way of letting him know he’d be right back before disappearing through the double doors. It had been three weeks since the shinobi joined their class. Meaning this was their third week of training them in quirkless activities. The first week had been a Quirkless Assessment, the second week had been an Introduction to Weapon Training, and this week was Escape Tactics. Everything from learning to break free from all forms of restraints such as handcuffs, ropes, chains, gags, cells, etc. Bakugou recalled how Kyo had mentioned they would eventually learn to fight while restrained and chained to one another. 

Bakugou stops in the middle of the hall. Resting his damp back against the cold white walls to catch his breath.  _‘I can’t think of anything more annoying,’_ he thinks glumly to himself. Wondering if his mind might eventually snap under the pressure of reliving one of his most traumatic experiences repeatedly. In front of his classmates no less. His left hand slowly gripping his right arm, which refused to stop shaking even now. 

 

**_Flashback_ **

 

“Today, we’re going to be working on how to escape from these,” Kyo announced, holding up a pair of handcuffs. They were nothing too complicated. Just your average handcuffs, not even the kind used to restrain the worst of villains. But even so, the sight of them made Bakugou’s blood run cold. 

“Piece of cake!”

“Sounds fun!”

Someone playfully elbows his side, which made Bakugou jump slightly, not that they noticed. “This should be extremely easy for you, Bakugou. You’ve already seen these up close and personal at the Sports Festival,” Kaminari joked beside him. 

“Nah, I bet he’s used to it by now,” Sero teased back before he could respond.

This earned a bunch of laughter from the class, but for once, Bakugou remained silent. Not trusting his voice to stay level with how fast his heart was racing. The only thing that kept him from throwing up his lunch was the fact that Kiri had stayed beside him as they were broken up into groups to learn escape measures from one of the three shinobi. Thankfully, they’d been assigned to Ribbons, who was the kindest instructor of all. It wasn’t until Kirishima had to leave to run an errand for Aizawa that he’d started to have a mental breakdown.

 

**_End of Flashback_ **

 

Bakugou punched the wall he was leaning against in frustration. The action breaking him out of his thoughts. He hated how weak he felt.  _‘I can’t even get my hands bound together without losing my shit! What kind of hero lets memories mess with their head like that? What the actual fuck!’_ he finishes by punching the wall a second time. The anger behind the blow actually managing to crack it. The comforting pain tingling up his arm, finally steadying his hand. With his nerves calmed, Bakugou quickly grabbed a drink of water from the fountain before heading back to class. 

Even though the explosive hero had befriended Kyo and Tohru over the last couple of weeks, it took some getting used to seeing them as part-time instructors. However, their skills more than proved their competence as teachers. Class A had their Heroics and Quirkless classes twice a week, with the quirkless course happening immediately after Heroics Training. This was done intentionally to wear them out. This meant that the class would have to take their stamina into consideration when they fought in the first class. Forcing them to establish an energy cap for themselves to represent how much energy they were allowed to expend for each category. They also couldn’t allow themselves to conserve too much energy at the expense of their overall progress suffering as a result. It really pushed them all to their limits. 

The 80 minutes of Quirkless Training was broken up into 3 parts. The first 15 minutes were dedicated to Kyo training them in martial arts and weaponry skills. The next 45 minutes of class was a themed class, which was taught by a different shinobi each week. At the beginning was a mock fight between a shinobi and another student to highlight areas for improvement or to teach a new technique. In the last 20 minutes, the class would break into three groups to get specialized training under the supervision of either Kyo, Tohru, or Tsubasa while Aizawa offers support here and there.

Bakugou was assigned to Kyo’s group along with Mina, Uraraka, Kaminari, Jiro, Tokoyami, and Shinsou. Those in his group were competent fighters already, so they mostly worked on advanced martial arts, weapon training, and anything Kyo thought they needed to improve on. The ash-blonde wished Kirishima was in his group. Unfortunately, he was assigned to Tohru’s group with Aoyama, Koda, Shoji, Hagakure, Deku, and Momo, who needed to work on agility and intermediate martial arts. Tsubasa was left teaching Asui, Iida, Ojiro, Sato, Sero, Todoroki, and Mineta, who need to build up strength and hon in on their individual fighting styles. 

For the most part, Bakugou was glad he was assigned to Kyo’s group. The Copycat was a pain in the ass, teasing him nonstop, but he was a great instructor. His brand of teaching was hands-on, and he wasn’t afraid to beat them up if they got anything wrong. Bakugou respected that the copper-haired teen didn’t sugarcoat anything or hold their hand during training. Preferring that they figured everything out for themselves. This meant that when they did do something right for the first time, it was ingrained into their very being. After each lesson, he would give clear instructions to what each person needed to improve on. Each day, Bakugou came back to the dorms covered in bruises, but with each one, he knew he was getting stronger and stronger. 

The Explosive Hero was beginning to feel more like himself when he slammed the double doors open again. Casually strolling over to his group with his hands in his pockets just as they started gathering around their part-time instructor. Giving a brief nod to Kirishima, who waved excitedly at him from across the gymnasium. 

“Nice of you to join us,” Kyo chided as he came to stand in between Uraraka and Jirou.

Bakugou removed a hand from his pockets to flip him off again. Not caring if Aizawa saw or not. The shinobi remained silent on the matter, only rolled his eyes before continuing with his lesson. “Starting today, we’re going to require those that are lacking strength or speed to wear these on your arms or legs during school hours to bulk up,” Kyo announced, pulling up the same compressed weights that the teachers wore during their final exams, from a box at his feet. 

He strapped a pair to both his arms and legs before continuing, “Needless to say, if you lack both or want a harder workout, you’ll have to wear both. Their approximately 20 pounds each right now, but we’ll be increasing the weight gradually over time.”

“You’ve got to be kidding,” Kaminari and Mina moaned pathetically. 

“Nope,” Kyo replied, dropping a pair of weights into each of their hands. “Hurry up and get strapped up. We’re going for a run,” he finished with an evil grin.

A chorus of moans sounded as they all begrudgingly started strapping the weight to either their arms or legs. Bakugou, never wanting to lose to anyone, strapped the weights to all his limbs. _‘The extra weight isn’t too unmanageable,’_ Bakugou thought after taking a few testing steps. He’d gladly double the weight then get handcuffed again. At least with these, he could still fight and move freely. This was a breeze compared to the nightmare he endured earlier. 

Once everyone had strapped them in place, Kyo led them for a run across campus. His quirk detonating every so often to scare anyone falling behind to speed up. The sounds of Carrottop’s chaotic laughing and Bakugou’s competitive yelling as he pushed himself to keep up echoing behind them as they ran. 

 

 

**_Kirishima P. O. V._ **

 

Class A enjoyed the warmth and comfort their second home provided as they relaxed in each other’s company. The dorms protecting them from the dark, frigid Mid-December air. A lot has happened these past few weeks. They had all made great strides in both their Heroics and Quirkless training, which seemed to make them all stronger if Kirishima’s sore muscles were anything to go by. Bakugou and Todoroki had also managed to pass their Remedial Classes to join the rest of the class as full-fledged heroes. Kyo and Tohru had cooked them both a feast of their favorite foods to the entire dorm’s delight. While Bakugou complained the whole time, Kirishima had caught him going back for thirds when he thought no one was paying attention. 

The new students have melded into their class rather easily. It had only been three weeks since they transferred to UA, but it was hard to imagine the class without them. Kyo and Tohru, especially. They both had been adopted into the Bakusquad almost instantly. Though every now and then, Tohru and Mina would be kidnapped by the rest of the girls. The class already picking up their habits and schedules. 

The most colorful of the shinobi was mischievous, impatient, extremely competitive, and prone to yelling, but he also had a quieter gentler side to him. If Kyo wasn’t with Tohru or the other members of Bakugou’s entourage, you could find him drawing or napping on the roof or in the big Cherry Blossom tree out front. High places seemed to put him at ease, but it was a wonder how he never fell, considering he always had an arm or leg dangling while he slept. After discovering the explosive shinobi wasn’t nearly as prickly as Bakugou, the class learned they could persuade Kyo to do almost anything if they turned it into a competition. If that doesn’t work, a food bribe usually does. And when all else fails, you ask Tohru to get him to do it. That boy was absolute putty in her hands. For how confidently he carries himself, he blushes brightly whenever she asks him to do something. Kirishima noticed that a subtle blush also colors his cheeks when he starts talking about something he enjoys like martial arts. His crimson eyes sparkling with childlike wonder, though he blushes even harder when he catches himself nerding out in front of people. 

Tohru, on the other hand, had a heart of pure gold. Finding beauty in everything around her and loved all living things. One day Koda came crying downstairs with his pet rabbit cradled in his arms. His bunny had sprained its foot doing a series of jumps. Tohru had gently taken the poor creature from his arms and calmly showed Koda how to care for the injury. A few minutes later, the bunny was as good as new. Afterward, she added animal medicine to his training to better care for the animals under his control. Her presence was a welcomed addition to the class. She quickly became the mother figure of the dorms by keeping them all well fed with her love of cooking and baking. True to her word, she prepared dinner for everyone every night, often taking people’s requests and accommodating people's dietary needs. Even concocting a terrifyingly spicy smoothie for Bakugou before every morning workout. 

No one knew how she managed to do so with everything else going on in their lives, but she carried out her duties with a blinding smile on her face. Instantly winning the hearts of every class member. Everyone stepped up to make sure she didn’t have to do the dishes or deliver meals to Aizawa sensei for her in an effort to lighten her load. All Might help the poor soul that ever tries to stand against her. They would not only have to answer to Kyo, but her 21 adopted children as well. 

Tsubasa was definitely the most mature of the shinobi. Often stepping in to be the voice of reason whenever his brother became overzealous in class or in social situations. Unlike his brother, the wind user was more of an introvert. Preferring to socialize in small groups. He tended to hang out with Shinsou and Deku a lot but also enjoyed reading in the shared space. Tsubasa had swiftly read through Midoriya’s collection of quirk notebooks during his first week. It was a common sight to see him and Midoriya discussing them at length over a cup of tea. The wind user was very kind, patient and soft-spoken, not one to rock the boat but would be happy to help whenever he could. Often demonstrating moves taught in class if someone asked. Even going so far as to slow the movement down to better understand it. 

After a vigorous workout during a quirk activity, he had given one of his discarded feathers to Momo since she had taken an interest in them. Delighted, she had made a display case for it, which rests on the desk in her room. He also seemed to have a soft spot for children as well. Kirishima had also seen him giving rides to Eri when she asked him what flying was like. An experience she still cheerfully talks about weeks later. 

Shinsou and Eri were also making great strides in finding their place within their class. It took some time for the Indigo-haired teen to let go of his big brother role. Tending to stay close to Eri’s side to make sure she was comfortable in this new chaotic environment, but as time passed and she grew more and more confident, he started to branch off as well. It was clear that everyone was committed to making her time here as pleasant as it could be. Even Bakugou kept his explosions to a minimum when he knew she was in the building. She spent a lot of her time with Midoriya’s friend group or being Tohru’s little helper in the kitchen. Though every now and then, laughter from the Bakusquad would pique her curiosity. She would nestle herself on top of Kirishima or Tohru’s lap and watch the chaos ensued in the safety of their arms. 

 _‘Yep, everything’s going great,’_ Kirishima reflected to himself. Giving his arms a good stretch before sinking back into the couch, his group of friends was currently hogging in the common room. Like usual, they had claimed the coveted big screen T.V. Momo had purchased for the dorms shortly after moving in. 

The rest of his friends were playing a heated game of Mario Kart instead of studying for the quiz they had the next day. Other classmates watched in amusement as they did their homework or studied, like the good students they were. It goes without saying that Bakugou was in first place while Mina and Kaminari fought for second. Kyo, however, was dead last. And he was absolutely pissed about it. A long string of curses flowing from his mouth like Bakugou himself. Iida had lectured him about it after his fifth loss, so he switched to cursing in another language. One that not even Sero could find on google translate. 

“Hiskv welvnwv! Cvyayvketv Hiskv! Este-nekricv yolketv! Hosaklv vhakv’ mvnicv yvhiketv! Sparky Hiskv yolketv hvswv!” Kyo spat angrily as he fell off of the rainbow road for the hundredth time. His unique accent thick and entrancing as he sounded out the long foreign words rapidly in succession. Strands of his bright orange hair starting to rise slightly in his aggravation of losing another game of Mario Kart. The ash-blonde snickering smugly at his expense from where he lay on the couch with his feet perched up on the arm. 

The redhead felt bad for Kyo. He wasn’t kidding when he said that he’s terrible at technology. He usually wanted nothing to do with it. But when Bakugou or anyone in the Bakusquad was annoyed with his mischievous nature, they challenge him to a videogame knowing he couldn't turn it down. Which was unfortunate for Kyo because he lost terribly every single time. 

What pissed Bakugou off this time? The copper-haired teen had detonated the ground in front of Bakugou, causing him to trip and lose their race to the dorms. Humiliate Bakugou, and you had to be prepared to suffer the same fate. An eye for an eye as they say. However, Kyo had only done that because Bakugou had knowingly eaten the last of the salmon onigiri in the cafeteria. Kyo’s absolute favorite food. Thus, the cycle continued once more. 

Irritated, the explosive shinobi throws himself at his equally volatile friend. The usual ending to one of their childish competitions. However, Bakugou expected this and pulls Kaminari in front of him. Shamelessly using the electric user as a shield. The two boys collide, causing a small static explosion from the contact of their conflicting abilities. The displaced energy forcing them to fall to the ground. But Kyo wasn’t going down that easily. At the last second, he manages to hook his leg around Bakugou’s to pull him down with them. 

“You fucking--” Bakugou began to curse before crashing into the ground. 

“Dogpile!” Mina squeals as she and Sero join the impromptu wrestling match.

“Count me in!” Kiri laughs as he too joins in on the fun. All of them squirming on the ground in a weird collection of arms and legs as they worked to pin the two hotheads to the floor. Their infectious laughter spreading to the rest of the common room as students abandoned their studies to watch them take on the untamable beasts of their class. 

“GET THE FUCK OFF!!!” they both yelled ferociously. Two pairs of crimson eyes staring daggers at their opponents. 

After much fighting and copious amounts of Sero’s tape later, they finally managed to secure them both to the floor. Promising to let them go once they cooled off. Leaving them to bicker with one another as Tohru called to tell them that dinner was ready. The redhead shooting one last look at them over his shoulder as Mina dragged him off to get a plate of food. 

If Kirishima and Tohru acted like brother and sister. Than Bakugou and Kyo bickered like brothers. Insanely similar and always lumped together. They seemed to behave more like brothers than the twins did. His scarlet eyes glance over to where Tsubasa was busy studying with Midoriya and Iida. Kirishima couldn’t help but notice that for twins, Kyo and Tsubasa didn’t spend a lot of time together outside of instructing. Only ever talking with each other when others were around. 

 _‘I wonder why that is,’_ he mused to himself. 

“The fated fallout between brothers,” Uraraka narrated beside him. Mirroring his thoughts. Her sudden appearance startling the redhead. 

“Oh, hey there, Uraraka,” Kirishima greeted nervously. 

“The Hitsuzen twins turned enemies,” she continued cinematically, ignoring his greeting.

“I wouldn’t go that far. They’re just not that close.”

“Hmm, maybe, but they hardly talk to one another. The twins must have had some kind of falling out because all three of them are tight-lipped about it,” Uraraka theorized with a finger resting cutely on her chin. 

 _‘A falling out?’_ Kirishima repeated to himself. The thought stirring the memory of a conversation he overheard with Bakugou that first week: 

 

_“Didn’t you learn your lesson yesterday? You should be taking it easy,” Tsubasa cautioned, his voice a little bitter. Nothing like the polite, friendly way he usually spoke. He had been walking a couple of feet behind his brother, trying to get his attention. He reached a tentative hand out toward Kyo._

_“I’m fine,” Kyo answered curtly. Shrugging off the hand, his brother tried to place on him. He had quickened his pace slightly as a result. “If you’re waiting for me to thank you. You can forget it. I didn’t need to be saved like this...”_

“Are you alright?” The bubbly girl asked, breaking through his thoughts. Concern ringing clearly in her voice. 

 

The redhead hadn’t realized that he had been frowning. “Yeah, I’m alright,” he replied, scratching the back of his head. “I’m sure they just need some time to work through their problems is all. We should honor their privacy and let them work it out for themselves for now,” he urged with a reassuring smile. 

“Alright, if you say so,” Uraraka agreed hesitantly. Giving him a comforting pat on the shoulder before joining her friends. 

“Yeah, it can’t be anything too serious,” Kirishima whispered under his breath. Grabbing a plate of food not only for himself but for Bakugou as well. Though as the words left his mouth, he wasn’t sure if he was still trying to convince Uraraka or himself. 

 

 

**_Aizawa P. O. V._ **

 

The underground hero casually observes his student’s wrestling match as he grades papers in the shared space. His presence in the dorms becoming an increasingly familiar sight with the threat of another attack looming over him. He had to get these graded soon with final exams coming up. Every now and then, taking a moment to enjoy the kunoichi’s cooking instead of the bland soylent meals he had grown accustomed to over the years. It was a nice change if he was candid with himself. Beside him sat his adoptive daughter Eri, who was having more fun coloring than eating the vegetables left untouched on her plate. He knew he should probably scold her, but like most of the class shenanigans, had opted to ignore it if it didn’t prove to be life-threatening. 

“I see class A is up to their usual hijinks,” a familiar voice beamed loudly.

Aizawa looks up from his grading to see the smiling face of All Might before him. He willed his eyes to remain neutral, but it was difficult. It still felt weird to see his deflated form with their students around. “Are they? I hadn’t noticed,” he replied with disinterest. Taking another leisurely sip of his coffee.

“Um, young Bakugou and Hitsuzen appear to be taped to the floor,” commented the previous Symbol of Peace.

The shaggy-haired teacher briefly glanced in their direction. Taking in the scene of the two explosive boys fuming under an exorbitant amount of tape as Sero and Kaminari fearlessly ate their dinner while sitting on top of them. A fretting Kirishima and Tohru trying their best to diffuse the situation before the whole building went up in a flashy devastating explosion. All the while, Ashido recorded the entire thing on her phone. No doubt planning to upload the video to their social media page.  _‘I really need to get them to delete that account,’_ the exhausted hero thought for the hundredth time.

“Huh, I guess they are,” yawned Eraser Head, before continuing with his grading. Managing to complete a few pages in annoyed silence, as All Might continued to stand awkwardly above him. 

“Do you need something?” Aizawa asked impatiently. His hand begrudgingly motioning to the chair across from him to get the retired hero from looming over him. 

The deflated hero immediately took a seat. He’d always been too polite to sit down without being offered. “Yes, actually. I wanted to check-in with you about your new students,” he confessed. His tone was friendly but low enough that any nearby students couldn’t casually overhear. “Are they getting along with everyone. Are they adjusting well to  _Hero_ life?”

 _‘Hero life, huh?’_ That statement alone made it clear that he was really asking about the shinobi’s placement within the hero course. Understandable really. Aizawa had been getting quizzical looks from nearly everyone from the school. No one besides Principal Nezu had the slightest idea of their real identities or the true purpose they served after all. And Aizawa planned to keep it that way. 

The raven-haired man marked another question wrong off of Ashido’s homework. The paper was more red than white at this point. “Don’t let that little skirmish fool you. Everyone is getting along fine enough,” he assured truthfully. Aizawa was more than pleased to see how well the shinobi interacted with his students. Each of them finding homes within the most influential groups of his class. All of them taking their mission seriously. They had exceeded his expectations by finding creative ways to help sharpen the students’ skills outside of the classroom. He had worried that Kyo would be the most troublesome, but despite his attitude, he seemed to be the most dedicated to seeing them improve. Often hosting training sessions outside of class or introducing games cleverly disguised as deduction and reflex training. Because of this, Kirishima, Kaminari, and Ashido’s practical performances had skyrocketed. 

This made the retired hero smile. “I’m glad to hear it. I was worried when I heard Present Mic. say that the oldest Hitsuzen had a habit of falling asleep in class.”

“It’s nothing more than a side effect of his quirk. Recovery Girl has a copy of all their medical records if he wants to check for himself,” Aizawa replied nonchalantly. Placing Ashido’s graded homework on the pile. It wasn’t a complete lie. His spontaneous naps  _were_ a side effect of his powers, though Aizawa didn’t disclose the fact that he had personally forged those medical records for him. Besides regaining lost stamina, those naps also helped to speed up his advanced healing abilities. Aizawa had a sneaking suspicion that his previous injuries were still acting up. 

“I’m glad to hear it!” laughed the blonde. Accepting the cup of tea, Tohru poured for him. She also topped off the eraser hero’s cup of coffee. Her hand patting Eri’s head gently before she disappeared into the kitchen again. “I wouldn't want it to get in the way of his studies.”

“Neither do I,” Aizawa responded cooly. It was a delicate game he was playing with the retired hero. To provide enough information about the trio without exposing the underlying secrets, half-truths, and lies hidden underneath the surface. All Might was obviously phishing for information. Trying to discern the underground hero’s motives and intentions of bringing shinobi into a school for heroes. Subtleness had never been as a skill the Symbol of Peace possessed. 

The blonde takes a sip of tea. “Do you mind telling me more about them? With my retirement, I haven’t had the chance to get to know them as well as I would like,” he asked politely. Aizawa could tell from his voice that he not only wanted to know that his students were in good hands, but that he was also genuinely curious. So Eraser Head decided to humor him.

“That troublesome child taped to the floor is as ill-tempered, arrogant and hot-headed as one would imagine him to be,” Aizawa began, nodding in the direction of the ruckus across the room. Though his tone softened a degree when he continued speaking. “Though I doubt you’ll find anyone more passionate or dedicated to improving their fighting style than him.”

This piqued the blonde’s interest. “Surely, you’re giving young Hitsuzen too much credit. It’s hard to believe he’s working harder than any of the other students. Young Mid-- I mean everyone has been very dedicated to becoming stronger,” All Might corrected clumsily. It never ceased to amaze Aizawa how obvious he was when it came to his favoritism for the freckled boy. 

 _‘Always so nosy when it comes to other people's secrets, but is so tight-lipped with his own,’_ grumbled the underground hero. What the retired hero didn’t understand was that Aizawa wasn’t over-exaggerating the teen’s abilities. In fact, the raven-haired man envied the explosive shinobi’s drive. Kyo spent the majority of his time training in one way or another. 

“Unlike you, I don’t play favorites. Objectively speaking, that boy  _is_ putting more effort in than the rest of the class,” the Eraser Hero assured sternly. His charcoal gaze moving to stare into his colleague’s blue eyes. “Let me walk you through a typical week for him. He goes on a morning run every day before school starts, participates in the Heroics training, and co-teaches the Quirkless class twice a week. He hosts bonus training with his assigned students at least once a week outside of class and instructs a girls-only class every Saturday,” he finished with a drawn-out sip of his coffee. He had left out the part of him doing an extensive investigation to find the UA traitor how he takes a few moments to show Eri a few defensive moves when he can. Though Aizawa hoped she’d never had to use them. 

“Despite mastering numerous martial arts forms and weaponry skills--with an emphasis on kunai, double chain whips, and staffed weapons. Kyo trains tirelessly to improve all areas of his fighting style diligently, as well as incorporating new styles to his regimen to become the best fighter he can be,” he continued in a neutral tone. Setting another graded paper on the stack in front of him. “I’m not dismissing the hard work or the growth of our students. But I’ve only seen Kyo’s level of dedication from Midoriya and Bakugou. Both of which haven’t been training nearly as long or are competent enough to teach complex moves to others yet.”

The raven-haired man set his mug down with a soft thump. “For as over the top as he is, Kyo is a remarkable teacher. Demonstrating a talent for analyzing a person's abilities and teaching a fighting style that would suit them perfectly while taking their current skill level into consideration,” the scruffy teacher stated thoughtfully. 

Aizawa only wished the troublesome shinobi dialed back his obsession with bringing weapons to class. It had gotten really old, very fast. It didn’t even matter that the underground hero performed strip searches on him every single day. Kyo had expertly hidden his ungodly arsenal everywhere, also managing to conceal them on other classmates unbeknownst to them. Most of this was for show, however. It gave Aizawa an excuse to give him detention, which they would use as a cover to exchange information on their real mission. The shinobi also left hidden messages inside the weapons; he dropped into the overflowing weapon bin before each and every class. Despite this, Aizawa let him get away with more than he should because he saw the twin’s mother in his antics. Lost in thought, he hadn’t realized that a small smile had broken through his composure. 

“Now who's playing favorites,” All Might teased after a thoughtful pause. This made Aizawa’s eye twitch angrily, and the smile left his face as fast as it had appeared. Terrified, the deflated hero quickly changed the subject. “Tell me about the other Hitsuzen twin?” he asked with a smile. Aizawa’s first explanation beginning to wash away the older hero’s doubts. 

The younger Hitsuzen twin, in contrast, was a gentle, kind-hearted and patient soul who looked out for others. “Tsubasa is an excellent fighter that can quickly gauge a person’s abilities by analyzing their movements. He mainly relies on strong kicks to increase his reach while keeping the rest of himself out of harm's way. He’s shown great creativity in class by using improvised weapons and shields found within his environment,” Aizawa summarized in between grading papers. Choosing to call them by their first names to make distinguishing the twins simpler. 

His red pen circles a wrong answer on Asui’s paper. Quickly jotting a helpful note down before continuing, “Mostly reserved, he hardly ever brings himself to attack first. Even during their demonstrations. Always allowing others the chance to harm him before attacking. However, it’s a mistake to think his in-action stems from fear. The boy frequently attacks the second an opponent takes their eyes off of him. Disappearing from view at blinding speed only to reappear right in front of them with his foot held centimeters in front of their face,” Aizawa recounts for his colleague. It was an impressive intimidation technique meant to force an opponent to yield before resuming attacks. Something reminiscent of Aizawa’s shinobi days. A tactic that had proved successful against Iida, Shouji, and Tokoyami during today’s Heroics class. 

“Quite the intimidating force,” All Might commented. His blue eyes sneaking a peek at the brunette across the room. The younger twin was currently demonstrating a slowed down kick to Iida while Midoriya scribbled down notes. 

“As terrifying as he is while he fights. There’s more to him than that,” Aizawa reassures quietly, lifting his face to meet All Might’s. It seemed that Tsubasa’s primary goal was to protect his teammates by defending, while Kyo’s was to protect by attacking. Similar to the two other problem children in his class. “He’s actually someone you’d probably take a liking to.”

“Oh yeah? What makes you say that?” the deflated hero asked hesitantly. Knowing full well how Aizawa frequently felt about his different teaching methods. It was something they bickered about often in the teacher’s lounge. 

The underground hero broke his gaze off first to go back to grading, much to the retired hero’s relief. “Tsubasa has shown time and time again during the Heroics classes to go out of his way to protect others. Often at the sake of his own well being. That’s your schtick, right?” the raven-haired man criticized. 

All Might’s head lowered slightly. He knew that Aizawa didn’t care for his self-sacrificing mantra. It was Aizawa’s most significant criticism with Midoriya. Now he possibly had another student to watch out for. After noticing Tsubasa’s selfless nature, Aizawa had decided to keep a watchful eye over him. Believing him to be the type to ignore or even hide his pain from others. Not knowing if Aizawa expected an answer from him, the deflated hero nodded in response to his question. With a roll of his eyes, he went back to grading. 

“Give him a chance. You might grow to like him. Midoriya certainly has,” the eraser hero suggested. While Aizawa had asked Tsubasa to become close to the freckled boy for their mission to succeed. It had ended up being the boy’s passion for history and knowledge of the various worlds he’d visited that had allowed Tsubasa to become fast friends with Midoriya. Bonding over their love of cataloging their expertise in a notebook of sorts, not that the freckled boy had any idea Tsubasa had a journal of his own. Aizawa, on the other hand, had been granted permission to pursue it in his spare time. It was a fascinating read, but one filled with hardship. 

“How about young Honda?” the deflated hero prompted noticing the frown on Aizawa’s face.

Before he could answer, another voice spoke up. “Big Sister’s the best!~” Eri chirped beside them. Adopting the same sing-song way, the kunoichi spoke. 

“Sister?” All Might asked, confused. His head tilting comically to one side, causing the long strands of golden hair to move with him. One of which blocked his right eye from view. “I beg your pardon?”

The little girl rested a finger to her chin as she pondered the best way to answer her senior’s question. “A girl family member that you love?” she offered hesitantly. A slightly trembling hand holding onto her apple dress for courage. Eri was still learning about the world around her after being shut off from it for most of her life. Because of this, she often confused words and meanings. Eri became self-conscious of this, which prevented her from speaking up when she first arrived. However, her confidence steadily grew with the lessons she received from the Wild Wild Pussycats and her beloved classmate Kota. The underground hero couldn’t be any prouder of her progress. “Like Kota’s big brother, Deku.”

“Ah, I see,” the retired hero smiled. A barely held back laugh sounding in his voice. “That’s correct.”

Her red eyes sparkled proudly at her accomplishment. The resulting smile she shot both of them absolutely blinding. “What do you want with Big Sister?” she asked All Might curiously.

“Oh well, I just wanted to know more about her is all,” The former Symbol of Peace replied awkwardly. 

“What do you want to know about her?” she asked innocently. Her usually quiet voice growing louder with her renewed confidence. Resulting in some nearby students’ heads to turn towards them with different levels of interest reflecting in their eyes. 

All Might’s cover gradually being blown with each question. When he had approached Aizawa, he hadn’t thought Eri wasn’t paying attention to their conversation. Now that All Might had her full attention, he didn’t want to appear nosy or for her to overhear something she shouldn't. His blue eyes pleaded with his colleague for some kind of parental assistance. However, the raven-haired man only grinned into his coffee, waiting for him to make the first move. Wanting nothing more than to return to grading his papers in peace.

The retired hero bowed his head in defeat. “Well, would you look at the time. I have a meeting with Principal Nezu that I can’t be late for,” All Might lied, excusing himself from the table. “We’ll have to catch up later, Aizawa. Until then!” He took a moment to say a few quick farewells before exiting the dorms. 

“See ya later!~” she called after him, waving as she did so. After a few seconds, Eri turned to her adoptive father. “Did I do a good job?” she asked quietly. 

The corners of Aizawa’s mouth twitched upward. “Yes, you did a great job scaring him off,” he praised, ruffling her hair in a loving gesture. “I believe you’ve stopped him from snooping on them for the time being, at least. Keep up the great work.”

Her adoptive father’s heartfelt praise made Eri smile. “Roger!” she giggled, her hand giving an adorable salute. Eri then picked up one of her discarded crayons and continued to draw. A joyful tune hummed under her breath as she drew herself, playing with three stick figures. One with long dangly ribbons, another with large bird wings, and the last with orange cat ears. All of which were surrounded by bright swirling colors.

 

 

**_Bakugou P. O. V._ **

 

It was well past Midnight by the time Bakugou and Kyo dragged themselves to the fourth floor. Both of them mentally exhausted after the Bakusquad’s late-night study session. Both envying Kirishima and Sero who retired early since they didn’t need as much tutoring as the two other hopeless members of their group. Carrottop would have joined them if he could, but the explosive hero refused to leave him unattended in his room. The fact that neither of them complained that they were still stuck sharing a room was a testament to how tired they really were. According to Aizawa, the renovations to the room adjacent to the blonde’s was only halfway done. Meaning they’d be stuck with each other for another few weeks at the very least.

“Sooo tired…” moaned the copper-haired teen. His crimson eyes were hazy and drooping heavily. His footsteps shaky as his legs struggled to keep him upright. 

“No shit,” muttered the ash-blonde. Grumpiness making Bakugou's tone sharper than usual, but despite this, Bakugou kept a watchful eye on his narcoleptic roommate. It wouldn’t surprise him at all if he passed out any second. 

“Think I’ll take a short nap here…”

“Stay on your feet, moron,” the ash-blonde ordered quietly. His hand grabbed the front of his shirt to keep Kyo's weight off of his weakened knees. Bakugou didn’t need another lecture about proper host etiquette from Glasses if he found Kyo napping on the stairs again. He gave him a good shake before continuing to drag him towards their room. There were a couple of sleepy protests from the shinobi, but Bakugou shushed them immediately. His footsteps quickening their pace so he could collapse onto his bed.

To say that Bakugou was exhausted was an extreme understatement. He was already beat after exerting himself during class. Then, there was the run around campus strapped to weights representing half his body weight. After which, he spent a couple of hours defending his top score in all of their favorite video games, followed by the surprise wrestling match, which ended in him and Kyo taped to the floor. 

 _‘Fucking morons,’_ Bakugou thought bitterly. His free hand absently rubbing the red marks on his arms, which had begun to sting with the memory.  _‘Like I needed another panic attack today.’_

Luckily for Bakugou, Kaminari and Sero overlooked two crucial details. That the class had just learned to escape all manners of restraints that afternoon and that Kyo was one of the instructors. The copper-haired teen tore through the tape enough to reach the hidden kunai his boot. Turned out, the psycho’s sharp canines were actually useful for something after all. The ash-blonde took comfort in the knowledge that they’d be free in no time and that he was relatively safe within the dorms. The familiar forms of his teachers sitting a few tables away also helped to ease his apprehension. So he decided to endure his growing anxiety in aggravated silence. Preparing to rage on his friends the second, he was released. It took some time to cut themselves free, but when they finally did, all hell broke loose. 

It was confirmed later that the idiots’ terrified screams could be heard from the nearby dorms as they ran for their lives. If those knuckleheads thought it was nearly impossible to escape Bakugou’s fury before, they should’ve thought better than to anger the Copycat Ninja as well. Their usual strategy of splitting up and hoping they weren’t the one Bakugou was targeting no longer an option in this unwinnable scenario. Lamps, pieces of furniture, and even other classmates were knocked over in their desperate attempts to shake off the twin beasts of their class. Neither of them held back as they chased their targets up and down the halls. Kyo even running on all fours at one point to close the distance between him and his prey. This over the top display, however, proved to be part of a greater ploy. 

Unbeknownst to them, the copper-haired teen had chased the idiots into a hidden snare he had set up earlier in the day. The tripwire instantly wrapping around their feet and hanging them by their ankles a second later. After taking a few photos of their shame, the explosive teens had decided to leave them dangling there for a good hour before they were forced to cut them down by Iida. Only then did their friend group finally buckle down to start studying for the quiz they had in English. Bakugou beating the material into their brains in the same manner that Kyo beat them into the ground during the Quirkless class. The comparison made the ash-blonde smirk,  _‘No wonder we got along.’_

Bakugou fought back a yawn as he unlocked the door to his room. His eyes resting on Kirishima’s door longingly for a few seconds. It was most likely unlocked. The ball of sunshine often forgot his key, so he made it a habit of keeping it open at all times. He considered sneaking in after Kyo went to bed but ultimately decided against it. It would be safer to wait until the renovations were done. No need to add another stressful element to his already chaotic life. 

Instead of gently resting his fatigued classmate on the ground, the explosive hero tightened his grip around the front of Kyo’s shirt before thrusting him into the room with all his might. This was Bakugou, after all. 

Kyo hit the ground with a loud  **_Thud!_   **His body fumbling over himself as he tried to decipher which way was up in his drowsy stupor. The shinobi’s momentum eventually being stopped when he crashed into Bakugou’s desk. A few items on top knocked to the floor as well. The blonde knew there would be a formal noise complaint taped to his door from Iida the next morning, but he was too tired to care. 

“You’re gonna pay for that,” The copper-haired teen growled. His lips pulled back to expose his glistening fangs while his eyes narrowed menacingly. The expression might be scary to some sidekicks, but to Bakugou, he looked like an idiot with him slumped upside down against his desk. Feet in the air comically with his arms stretched out on either side of him. 

“Fat fucking chance,” grumbled the hothead. Closing his door quietly to not wake the redhead next door. He kicked off his house slippers, hoping to hit Kyo with one, but he lazily rolled out of the way easily enough. “Hurry up and go to sleep,” Bakugou ordered in a hushed tone. Tossing him, the one bag Kyo brought with him to UA. 

Unfortunately for him, the bag was more cumbersome than Bakugou thought, causing it to fall short of what he had intended. Two sets of crimson eyes watched as the satchel landed between them in slow motion. Both too tired from training to reach it in time. The dark pack it the ground with another heavy  **_thud._   **An assortment of items spilling out of it and scattering across the room much to their collected dissatisfaction. 

 _‘Shit’_ was all Bakugou could think. His unease and awkwardness freezing him in place. He didn’t know what to do or what he should say. Bakugou was well aware that he fucked up, but he had no idea how to fix it or mend the situation. The ash-blonde had to fight back his default response to become angry when feeling insecure in social interactions since that course of action was unjustified in this situation. So he opted to wait for Kyo to make the first move. 

The ash-blonde could feel his heart clench in his chest as he regretted his carelessness and irritation. Hoping that his mistake didn’t cause anything valuable or sentimental to break in the fall. Bakugou’s eyes quickly glance at his desk. He’s relieved to see that Kyo’s twin kunai were still there. It was the only thing Bakugou knew Kyo truly cared about. Something he ordered him to never touch.  _‘At least those are alright.’_

After what felt like an eternity, the spell finally broke when Kyo let out a long irritated sigh. With it, Carrottop pushed himself up from where he still lay slumped on the floor. Silently moving to retrieve his few possessions from around the room. Turning his back toward the blonde as he worked.

Bakugou watched him for a few seconds before he too crouched on his knees to aid in their collection. “Sorry…” he mumbled apologetically. Handing Kyo his sketchbook and colored pencils without making eye contact. It was the most submissive he ever allowed himself to be in front of another person besides Kiri. 

The explosive hero could feel the shinobi’s intense gaze upon him as he studied his face. Bakugou’s cheeks starting to heat up with his growing embarrassment. He hoped that Kyo knew that he didn’t do this on purpose. That it was an accident and that he wasn't a complete asshole just for the fun of it. A few moments passed before he felt the weight of the possessions slowly leave his hand. 

“It’s fine,” came Kyo’s drowsy response. There was an underlying hint of leftover irritation in his voice, but otherwise, his tone seemed genuine. This made Bakugou feel a little better about the situation, so he gave a curt nod to his classmate. Letting him know that he appreciated being forgiven for his hasty actions.

The two explosive teens continued to work in silence. Their movements were sluggish and clumsy as they fumbled to gather all the belongings before retiring for the night. The floor looking more and more comfortable with each passing second. The ash-blonde silently cursing Kyo for cramming more shit into his one pack than he would have thought possible. Just when he thought he managed to retrieve the last of the copper-haired teen’s belongings, his phone’s flashlight reflects off of something underneath his bed. 

Bakugou lets out a long drawn out groan when he doesn’t recognize the object. Muttering a long string of curses under his breath, he crawls over to his bed. With his draped arm on the bed supporting his weight, he begins to reach for the item with his other hand. After spending a few moments feeling around blindly, his fingers brush against something cold. With a grunt, he stretches even further. Grabbing hold of it once it was within his grip. 

What the explosive hero brought out from under the bed confused him deeply. It appeared to be some sort of headband. Not all that surprising considering Kyo was a shinobi and all, but this one was oddly familiar. Bakugou couldn’t bring himself to do anything but blinked dumbly at the object in his hands. His thumb tracing the design engraved into the protective metal guard on the front. 

 _‘That looks like...No, it can’t be. It has to be a joke, right?’_ Bakugou thought to himself. But something nagged at the back of his skull as he stared at the headband in his hands. His body becoming fidgety in that all too familiar way it always does before something terrible or monumental happens. 

“What the hell is this?” Bakugou finally asked, turning toward his roommate with the headband held up accusingly. His voice hitching ever so slightly. He didn’t know why he suddenly felt so on edge, but there was no going back now that all his senses were heightened. He needed answers. “You some kind of manga nerd or something?” he asked, bewildered. 

Kyo was confused. That much was evident from the look on his face to the way his head subtly cocked to one side. “Manga?...” he repeated awkwardly and slightly mispronounced due to his accent. Like he had never heard that word before.  _‘Not a good sign.’_

“A graphic novel,” Bakugou further explained, hoping to jog the thick-headed shinobi’s memory. He knew that Kyo was bad at modern items from being a shut-in most of his life, but he had to have heard of them in passing at least. The blonde pointed at the headband. “This is from a manga. A basic one at that,” Bakugou added in a slightly insulting tone.

A spark of realization reflected in Kyo’s eyes then. “Oh yeah, the shinobi one set in the Land of Fire, right?” the copper-haired teen summarized.

“Right…that’s the one,” Bakugou confirmed hesitantly. His voice slowly morphing into his dangerously neutral tone. 

While the shinobi’s recollection wasn’t wrong, it was a weird way to summarize the manga. The ash-blonde was way too proud to ever admit aloud that he had been enthralled by the manga when he was in grade school. Back before he realized what shinobi stood for in this world. Despite this, even Bakugou forgot the country the story was based on. understandable since most of the events centered around the shinobi village instead of the entire country.  _‘He didn’t even remember the name of the main character, which is the name of the whole story.’_

Sensing Bakugou’s unease, Carrottop tried to laugh off the awkwardness between them. “Yeah, I tried to get into it awhile ago, but never ended up finishing it,” he admitted with a nervous chuckle. Flashing the blonde, his usual toothy smirk, but his general confidence didn’t reach his crimson gaze. After a brief pause, he continued, “I can hardly remember what even happens in it. Do you know if they ever accomplish what they set out to do?”

Bakugou’s eyebrows scrunched into a scowl. “Are you too dumb to remember that the main character wanted to be Kazekage?” he asked his roommate carefully. Purposely giving the wrong information in a guarded and standoffish tone. Kyo’s vague remarks were making him anxious for some reason. Coupled that with the fidgety feeling deep in his gut caused all of his senses to be on high alert. Time seemed to be slowing down in his mind, like how it does when he’s fighting. His shoulders instinctively tensing up, while his palms began to sweat in preparation for some non-existent threat. 

Kyo didn’t seem phased by Bakugou’s question at all. Instead, casually taking a seat on top of Bakugou’s bed without permission. “I’m smart enough to know that the symbol on that headband means it’s from Konohagakure, not Sunagakure,” the copper-haired teen corrected smugly. His hand waving him off in a flippant manner. With a nervous laugh, he added, “Maybe you got shocked one too many times from Sparky and are starting to lose some of your own brain cells as a result.”

Even though the insult irked him, Bakugou remained silent. His mind carefully over-analyzing the exchange between them. His intimidating crimson eyes narrowing into his customary glare as he studied the shinobi before him. In the back of his mind, Bakugou knew this whole situation was stupid. ‘ _Why am I even bothering with this conversation about some dumb story I read when I was a kid?’_ Bakugou thinks drowsily. He wanted nothing more than to go to sleep at this moment. But something about this whole interaction still nagged at his mind. 

As if reading his thoughts, Kyo continued, “C’mon man, it's just a story, right? Something I read when I was younger. Just curious about how it turned out.”

It was clear to Bakugou that Kyo hadn’t read much of the story, but knew enough details about it to be knowledgeable about the fantasy world it took place in. If Binoshi was as strict as the trio made it sound, then it would be challenging to acquire volumes or speak with anyone who knew anything about it. Kyo could simply be trying to pick the explosive hero’s brain for information about the ending. 

 _‘Figures, the idiot does hate reading after all,’_ he thinks passively to himself. Ready to drop the topic and conversation altogether.

The explosive hero’s eyes blinked a few times dumbly with that sudden realization.  _‘Kyo hates reading,’_ Bakugou repeats in his head. Recalling how the troublesome ninja goes to great lengths to avoid reading at every opportunity. How he purposely overexerts himself every day before English class to avoid being called on during class and how he hides his terrible spelling behind his disastrous handwriting. With how the shinobi avoids books like the plague, it seemed highly improbable that he would willingly subject himself to any form of reading just for the fun of it. Granted, there was always the possibility that Kyo had heard the story from another person, which could explain how he was knowledgeable about some aspects of the manga while other bits of information like character names were lost in translation along the way. But Bakugou believed that was incredibly unlikely considering he had only interacted with other sheltered shinobi candidates at Binoshi before being allowed to attend UA. 

Bakugou thinks back about other odd behaviors Kyo and his teammates exhibited over the last few weeks. Everything from the twins’ weird accent and proficiency in a language no one can place, to the odd cadence Tohru spoke in. How the trio mysteriously transferred from a school no one’s heard of, the bewildered look they give whenever they encountered a unique quirk or how they seemed completely oblivious about the world around them. That heroes and shinobi were suddenly forced to work together, their weird overpowered quirks and, of course, the weird unexplainable aura that seemed to roll off of them.

The ash-blondes attention turns back to Kyo, who waited patiently for Bakugou to give him the time of day. At first glance, the copper-haired teen seemed perfectly at ease. His long legs stretched out over the edge of the bed in a casual manner, while the rest of him lay back comfortably with his elbows propping him up. A position that exposed him greatly if he were to be attacked, which spoke to how confident he felt with his abilities at all times. A fact highlighted by the confident smirk that never left his face, but the expression doesn’t quite reach his eyes. Aided by his heightened senses, Bakugou notices the stiffness of Kyo’s shoulders. His eyes were able to discern that they are trembling slightly in what he believes to be apprehension. That the copper-haired teen’s hands have the blankets balled into his fists, which he could use as leverage to launch himself forward if the need be. 

Bakugou’s scowl deepens as he regards the random anime headband in his hand.  _‘Why would such a thing have been hidden amongst Kyo’s belongings?’_ he wonders to himself. If the manga was something that Kyo casually read when he was younger, why would he bother keeping a tacky relic from it? He seemed hellbent on convincing Bakugou that his connection to the story was no big deal, but keeping the headband contradicted that claim completely. Everything about this situation was bizarre. 

His thumb traced the spiral design on the front. The protective plate was crafted from real steel, giving it some heft, instead of being made of aluminum or a cheap plastic like Bakugou had previously believed. Even with it being made from a more durable material, it was still heavily scratched up and dented in a few places. Obviously worn into battle with the amount of abuse it endured. The headband itself was made from a once brilliant black silky fabric with what appeared to be washed-out bloodstains scattered here and there. The sight of it made Bakugou’s blood run cold with the realization that it was authentic. 

“This is real,” Bakugou whispered half to himself, breaking the silence for the first time. His mind still reeling with the absurdity of his conclusion, but the evidence he gathered and the bloodied headband in his hand supported his suspicions. The surplus of adrenaline pumping through his veins made him jittery, causing his fingers to tap against the steel plate of the item in his possession. Skeptical crimson orbs narrowed at the object before finding their way to its owner. Bakugou gritted his teeth in agitation to curb his need to blow something up. 

“Unless you had a stupid weeb phase and actually wore this in public. I’m willing to bet that this is a real Hidden Village Headband,” Bakugou declared in a guarded tone. His voice low and even, daring his classmate to deny his claims. 

 The shinobi takes a moment to flick some of his bright orange hair out of his eyes before answering. “You sure? You’re not very good at bets if I recall,” Kyo jokes casually, but his eyes are slightly panicked. His voice hitching ever so slightly in his desperate attempt to distract the ash-blonde from the secret he was about to uncover. 

But Bakugou wasn’t falling for it. “I’m 100% sure this is real. I just don’t understand how it’s real.” Bakugou growled back, refusing to fall for the shinobi’s tricks. The explosive hero’s body instinctively taking a step forward to close the distance between them, as well as block Kyo’s means of escape through the door behind him. “It doesn’t make any sense. It’s just a stupid manga. Characters made up for the entertainment of children. Tell me how you’re real?” he orders in a threatening tone. Beginning to understand that the headband and Kyo himself were one and the same.

Renewed panic flashes in the copper-haired teen’s eyes, causing Bakugou to tense as a result. The shinobi’s hesitance confirming the blonde’s hypothesis as far as Bakugou was concerned. He carefully dropped into a defensive crouch with his scrutinizing gaze fixed on Kyo. Ready to defend or run if Kyo made a move towards him. Bakugou just blew a shinobi’s cover. It didn’t take a genius to know that could prove to be fatal. 

Bakugou’s mind swirled with a million questions. All of which screamed for answers.  _`How is this possible? Why did they lie? Why are they here? Does this mean they’re all a threat?’_ He visibly flinches when the recalls the faces of the League of Villains and All For One. An ominous chill starts to overtake him as fear begins to fog over his thoughts. His breath starting to hitch with the beginnings of a panic attack, though the abundance of adrenaline in his system keeps him from shutting down completely. The explosive hero shakes his head to focus his thoughts.

 The ash-blonde recalls how the shinobi seemed fixated on him and Deku from the very beginning. An incriminating coincidence in his eyes, considering both of them are targeted by villains regularly. At this point in time, Bakugou saw them as full-fledged enemies until proven not to be.  _‘Were they tasked with infiltrating the school to report our weaknesses back to our enemies? Should I confront him about it now, or should I run and inform Aizawa?’_ He gritted his teeth even harder when he remembers his sleeping classmates. Wondering if Kyo would exploit their vulnerable states if he fled. 

 _‘No, it would make more sense to neutralize me to preserve his cover,’_ Bakugou concluded. With that concern taken care of, it came down to what course of action Bakugou would take in this situation. Should he confront Kyo here, or should he attempt to run and inform his teacher of the potential threat? 

Kyo pushed himself up from the bed then. The movement casual in nature, but came off as more threatening than it actually was due to Bakugou’s heightened senses. In that instant, Bakugou decided that his best course of action would be to alert his teachers of what he discovered.   _‘I have to let Aizawa know now,’_ the ash-blonde affirms. Immediately making a bolt for the door. 

The hero hears an exasperated hiss behind him, followed by the sound of the shinobi scrambling to his feet, but he ignores it. He’s only a few paces from the door. However, Bakugou’s momentum is suddenly halted as something grabbed hold of his leg and began to drag him backward. With a low growl, he whirls his head to see one end of his laptop charging cord wrapped around his ankle while Kyo attempts to pull him further into the room. The cable painfully constricting around his leg as it ground into him. 

“C’mon, let me explain,” the copper-haired teen pleads with another pull of the cord. But his snappish tone came off as more of an order than a suggestion, which of course, rubbed the blonde the wrong way. 

“Fuck off,” Bakugou countered, wrapping his foot around the cord to get some leverage before tugging with all his might. Pulling a surprised Kyo forward and knocking him off balance in the process. Before the shinobi could recover his balance, the hero-in-training slams his knee into the Copycat’s face. The force of the blow immediately causing Kyo to release his hold of the cable, as blood starts gushing from his nose. Hopefully, buying Bakugou the few seconds needed to make a mad dash into the hall. 

Bakugou rushes to the door. Taking care that the cord still attached to his foot doesn’t get snagged by anything during his retreat. He’d be able to remove it quickly when he makes it to safety. His hand just wrapping around the doorknob when  **_THUNK!_ **The blonde’s eyes slowly move to his left. There he sees two kunai jammed within the crack of the door. With gritted teeth, Bakugou pulls on the handle in a futile attempt to free it, but the door doesn’t budge an inch. With the walls of his room newly fortified after the fire alarm incident, Bakugou’s only means of escape was the balcony, which was conveniently blocked by his opponent. 

Out of options, Bakugou opens his mouth to yell for Kirishima next door, but Kyo was already on him. “Kiri--” he begins to yell only to be cut off when a hand roughly claps itself over his mouth. 

“Shhh Come on, let’s talk this out,” Kyo hissed under his breath. His hand focusing on muffling the string of curse words currently trying to leave Bakugou’s mouth instead of blocking his flow of air. Meanwhile, he attempts to pin one of the blonde’s arms behind his back to subdue him. However, Bakugou retaliates by making his new favorite jiu-jitsu move by falling backward in the opposite direction. A move identical to the one he had done to Tohru during their first class together. 

This forced Kyo to reposition himself by releasing his hold on his arm so he wouldn’t get pinned underneath Bakugou when they landed. The shinobi’s firm hold over his mouth loosening ever so slightly. Nothing too monumental, but it was enough for Bakugou. Fueled by his tenacious nature and the experience he gained from his hero training, Bakugou managed to wiggle free enough to bite down hard on Kyo’s hand.

Bakugou had to give the shinobi credit. Despite Kyo being bitten, he didn’t loosen his hold on his face. Instead, he tightened his grip while he put the blonde into a headlock. Bakugou, however, held firm. Passively wishing he had Kirishima’s sharp teeth at this moment as he bites down even harder. The blonde taking great pleasure in the satisfying hiss of pain that escaped the shinobi's lips every time he increased the pressure. The taste of blood was overwhelming, but he choked back his queasiness. The shinobi had finally released him. Prioritizing freeing himself from Bakugou’s hold instead of threatening to choke him out. 

However, the ash-blonde had greatly underestimated his opponent’s resolve. Fed up, Kyo forced Bakugou to release him by hand, chopping the hero’s throat. A mixture of shock and pain instantly ripped his mouth open with a **_GAK!_ **Effectively freeing his enemy and preventing him from calling out for aid in one fluid movement. The pain was so intense that it made his vision blur for a second. His dilated pupils continuing to tremble in correlation to his racing heart. Bakugou’s hand quickly reaching to his neck to assess the damage to his throat while his other hand absentmindedly wiped the trail of drool from his mouth. Though it wasn’t long before he realized that he didn’t have the luxury to stay motionless for long. His body instantly moving out of reflex when he felt Kyo trying to pin him to the ground. 

They continued to scuffle on the ground. Both teens doing everything they could to overpower the other. Books and half-done assignments clattering to the floor around them as they crashed and rolled along with it. It was a wonder how no one came to complain about the noise at this point. But that would have been too convenient. 

Kyo obviously had the upper hand with all his experience. Eventually managing to pin Bakugou’s legs with his own. However, Bakugou wasn’t defenseless. He had been watching all the shinobi carefully ever since they had arrived. He knew a lot of their weaknesses even if they all thought they had hidden them well from curious eyes. While they wrestled on the floor, Bakugou made sure to touch Kyo with as many parts of his body and clothes as he could. Hoping to sap his strength by abusing the weakness of his always active quirk. When the hero felt the shinobi’s movements weakened considerably. Bakugou instantly elbowed Kyo’s right shoulder as hard as he could. It was the shoulder he always babied after classes. 

The explosive shinobi instantly doubled over. Not even attempting to keep hold of his target. Unconcerned, Bakugou grabs hold of him and flips him over his shoulder. Slamming him hard onto the floor. Quickly moving to stand above him. Securely holding his foot triumphantly against his opponent’s throat. Ready to crush his windpipe should the need arise. Kyo’s hands instinctively grab hold of the foot, threatening his life, but Bakugou increases the pressure slightly in a warning.

“Hold it right there, fucker,” Bakugou ordered in a raspy voice. One of his crimson eyes wincing slightly with the dull pain that flared when he tried to speak. But he powered through it, “One wrong move, and I’ll end you.”

“...fuck off…” Kyo wheezed in between pants. Waving off his threat, but slowly relaxing his grip in submission. His nose had stopped bleeding, and there were traces of blood smeared on his clothing from their wrestling match. “What kind of monster goes for people’s injuries? You must not have trusted me at all for you to be actively looking for weaknesses to exploit later on, huh?” he asked in an almost somber tone. 

“Don’t take in personal. I hardly trust anyone 100%,” Bakugou replied. He intended his statement to sound like a taunt, but the raspiness of his voice made it sounded bitter. Fitting because that’s precisely how this whole exchange left him feeling. He mentally shook off his nerves. Choosing to focus on the enemy in front of him instead. 

“Now, you’re going to tell me everything I want to know or else,” the ash-blonde ordered. Bakugou's hand sparkling quietly to emphasize his threat of bodily harm. 

“Oh, so now we’re going to talk this out? That’s what I wanted from the very fucking beginning,” Kyo hissed under his breath. His lips pulled back to highlight his glistening canines. 

“Shut the fuck up.” 

“Well, do you want me to answer your questions, or do you want me to shut up? Make up your mind, dumbass!”

Bakugou barely stopped himself from crushing his throat right then. Too blinded by rage to think rationally. It almost felt like he was talking to Deku all of a sudden. If the nerd talked back and suddenly developed a sailor’s mouth that rivaled Bakugou’s very own. The conflicting mass of emotions he had regarding the little green pipsqueak did seem familiar in this situation. Maybe he was angry because Kyo was basically his double in more ways than most. Or perhaps it was that he felt betrayed because he had come to befriend the exchange student over these past couple of weeks. Only to discover that he wasn’t who had claimed to be. That Kyo had been hiding something from him all this time. A situation was way too similar to the Deku and All Might fiasco. 

In the aftermath of their scuffle, Bakugou’s developing hero instincts faded until only a few jittery traces remained. With it, his head slowly began to clear. Leaving the explosive hero conflicted. He was at a loss of what to do. He had Kyo, a possible threat, pinned underneath him, but he couldn’t exactly leave to tell Aizawa what he discovered. Not without releasing his captive to do so. He also couldn’t restrain him for long without Kyo breaking free. He momentarily considered asking for a classmate’s help, but when his hero senses flared up in opposition, he decided against it. Bakugou’s instincts had never let him down before, so he trusted them full-heartedly. Though he wished he could ask Kirishima for help. 

“So, what now?” The copper-haired teen asked the future hero. His eyes already beginning to droop now that the adrenaline keeping him awake was starting to burn itself off. If Bakugou wanted answers, he’d need to act quickly before Kyo was forced asleep from his powers. “Are you going to turn me in now that you’ve already branded me as a villain?”

“Are you admitting it?” Bakugou growled back. Unintentionally digging his heel into his throat a little more with the mention of villains. 

Kyo doesn’t struggle against it. In fact, he extends his neck and turns his head in an entirely submissive gesture. His body going slack to showcase to Bakugou that he’s entirely at his mercy. “I can’t admit to what I’m not,” Kyo answers back. His crimson eyes reflecting with a renewed fiery resolve that wasn’t there before. “We’re not your enemies. We’ve come here to help you out. The fact that we’re not from Binoshi doesn’t change that,” he continues in a sincere tone.

The future hero scoffs at that. “And I’m just supposed to believe that?” Bakugou sneered back. 

Kyo almost looked hurt by his words. He turned his head away from him, further exposing his vulnerable neck. “Believe me or don’t. I have no control of what truth you choose to believe,” Kyo replied sullenly. Leaving Bakugou wondering how he was able to read the shinobi’s emotions so effortlessly. 

“If you’re not from Binoshi, where do you three come from?”

“I think you already know where,” the copper-haired teen replied. His head slowly motioning towards the headband, lying on the floor a few feet away from them. 

“But how is that possible?” growled the explosive hero. His brain was unable to make sense of the truth he’d known since discovering headband was the real thing. “It’s not a real place. It’s a fictional story about made-up characters.”

“No, they aren’t. They’re real people with lives and wills of their own,” Kyo argued in a hushed tone. Before Bakugou could ask anything further, he continued, “You’re just reading about people in a world different than yours.”

This revelation surprised the blonde enough for him to remove his foot from his captive’s throat. “A different world?” Bakugou repeated carefully. His crimson eyes hardening into a scrutinizing glare. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

“Exactly how it sounds stupid,” Kyo scoffed. His confidence raising a bit now that the blonde had removed his foot. He slowly brought a hand to rub his neck but made no attempt to sit up. Choosing to keep movements to a bare minimum until they worked their differences out. “There’s more than one, you know. Infinite worlds even.”

“And how would you know that?” the ash-blond questioned. 

“Well, how else would you explain us being here?”

Kyo had him there. There was simply no other way to explain how he could be from the  _“fictional”_ Land of Fire. Bakugou pinched the bridge of his nose with what he felt was the beginning of a massive headache. 

“Let’s assume I believe you come from another world. How do you explain your presence in  _this_ world? How did you even get here?!” the future hero questioned. Struggling to keep his volume low enough that no one could accidentally overhear them. 

“Because that’s what we do,” Kyo answered, so matter of fact. Like it was the simplest thing in the world. He blinked a few times when he noticed that Bakugou’s expression quickly morphed into one that wanted to strangle him again. Not in the mood for another wrestling match, Kyo promptly elaborated, “It’s kind of our job to travel across them. Helping people out whenever we can.”

Kyo swiftly explained how he and his teammates grew up in the shinobi village Konohagakure instead of Binoshi. That his family possessed the ability to travel across multiple worlds, which they used to retrieve items and build connections with influential individuals for the sake of their home. However, after their mother died, they had steadily lost favor with the villagers. Most of which were beginning to fear their extraordinary abilities. They had decided it was in their best interest to leave that world behind before anything terrible occurred. Kyo explained that they’ve been looking for a new home ever since. Completing jobs whenever they can to afford traveling, as well as build a rapport with the individuals they’ve met. 

While Kyo continued with his explanation, the uneasiness in Bakugou’s stomach slowly melted away. The concerns and questions he had about the trio since they had arrived at UA suddenly being addressed. He paid extra close attention to the shinobi’s body language and tone of voice. Observing that Kyo’s posture was relaxed with only a slight tensing of his shoulders. Every now and then, the Copycat would break eye contact when describing his life in another dimension, but the emotions reflected in them were sincere. Kyo was genuine in his recounts as far as the future hero could discern. He was most likely keeping some vital pieces of information to himself, but regardless of this, Bakugou was sure that the trio wasn’t working with the League of Villains. There were only a couple of things that still didn’t add up.

“How the hell did you end up teaching at this school?” 

Kyo let out a drawn-out sigh. “Would you believe me if I said Aizawa was grading papers in a tree when we landed here?” the copper-haired teen grumbled.

Bakugou could believe that. The only thing that could make that statement more on-brand for Aizawa was if he was drinking soylent while he did it. “And he was on board with you being from another world?” he asked skeptically.

“Well, no,” Kyo admitted. He finally allowed himself to sit cross-legged. “He was very suspicious as you could imagine. Though once we explained that we weren’t villains, but other-worldly travelers, he decided to help us out with lodging in exchange for helping your class out.”

“It was that easy?”

“Well, he said something about wanting to keep an eye on us while we’re in this world. Also threatened to  _‘Erase our existence’_ if we did anything terrible.”

 _‘Sounds about right.’_ His story seemed to check out. 

Bakugou took a seat on his bed. Fatigue finally catching up with him. “I assume you want me to keep my mouth shut about this?” he grumbled half to himself. Pinching the bridge of his nose to ward off his migraine. He was really getting sick of being the keeper of everyone’s dangerous secrets. 

“That would be ideal,” his roommate answered sheepishly. There was a small groan in response, followed by a few moments of silence before he continued, “Can I ask you something?”

“What?”

“Well, I was wondering if you could tell me more about the manga?” He asked nervously.

“Weren’t you from that world? Why do you even care?”

Kyo pursed his lips together before breaking eye contact from him. His cheeks shaded a light pink. “It might sound stupid to you, but I was kinda hoping my mother might have been in it. She died when I was 5, so I don’t remember her much,” he admitted with an embarrassed huff. 

“You serious?” 

“It’s stupid. Forget about it,” the shinobi replied defensively. Flopping down on the floor and turning his back toward the blonde. His head resting on his folded arm as if he were going to force himself to sleep to avoid talking further. 

Bakugou regards the discarded headband still lying on the floor a few feet away. The item that had started all of this. How it was bloodstained.  _‘Oh, that’s why,’_ he realized. Remembering how Kyo had stated that they had left that world after their mother was killed.  _‘If she died when they were 5, then they wouldn’t have received their headbands yet.’_

“That’s your mother’s headband, isn’t it?” 

“What of it?”

Because this was a sensitive topic, Bakugou refrained from saying something snarky back. “The main story is about how Naruto becomes Hokage. I don’t know who your mom is, but if she’s in it, she probably didn’t get a lot of time in the books,” he explained in a curt tone. Before he could get his hopes dashed, he continued, “But they’ve made a bunch of branch off stories since its original release that might have some more info of her.”

“Really?” The copper-haired teen replied, hopefully. His head peeking over his shoulder to shoot him a sideways glance. 

The ash-blonde grunted. “Yeah, I grew bored of it when I started middle school, so I wouldn’t know for sure,” Bakugou replied in a voice that conveyed that his middle school life was already more exciting than battling ninjas. “My mom is still a huge manga nerd, so maybe she knows for sure.”

“Can you ask her about it?”

“Hell no, just come over this weekend and rummage through her collection yourself.”

Crimson eyes blinked dumbly at the blonde for a few seconds. “Did you just invite me over to your house?” 

“Shut up. Just get Aizawa’s permission,” Bakugou ordered, throwing one of his surviving pillows at Carrottop’s face. It would serve him a lot better than using his arm as a cushion. Bakugou had a second reason for wanting to look into the mangas with Kyo. He wanted to confirm with his own eyes that the trio was who they said they were. Books that highlighted past experiences and showed their innermost thoughts would provide valuable insight into their lives and motives. 

Bakugou wished that was the end of it, but life couldn’t be that easy for him. Even though the future hero wanted nothing more than to fall asleep. He knew he had to settle one last thing first. With a sigh, he pushes himself off the bed and heads for the balcony.

“Where are you going?” Kyo wondered aloud. 

“I have to take care of something. Don’t wait up for me,” the blonde grunted vaguely. Slamming the sliding glass door behind him before Bakugou could be questioned any further. The cold air immediately nips at his face. He takes a moment to warm his hands while he waits to see if Kyo attempted to follow after him. Doubtful with how exhausted he was.

A few moments pass without any movement disturbing his dark curtains. Satisfied, Bakugou makes his way on top of the railing. Being mindful of the slippery surface as he jumps from his balcony to Kirishima’s. Upon landing, he quickly lets himself into his friend’s room. 

It’s dark, the only sound being the redhead’s quiet snoring. The ash-blonde sat down on the bed. Absently wondering if he had jumped the gun a little bit. He gently shook his friend’s shoulder to rouse him. “Kiri, wake up,” he whispered quietly. 

Bakugou wasn’t sure if Kirishiam could hear him with the strong sleeping medication he was recently prescribed for his nightmares. But eventually, a sleepy voice responded, “Bakugou?” The camo blanket shifting underneath him as the redhead moved to face him. “Is everything okay.”

“Not really,” he started awkwardly. It was going to be difficult to justify his actions without spilling the trio’s secret. Deciding that it would be better not to sugar coat anything, the blonde just came out and said what was on his mind. “Something came up, so we have to reschedule our sleepover this weekend.” 

“How come?”

“I can’t say, but it’s really important,” the explosive hero responded, hoping that Kirishima would understand and leave it at that. “I’ll make it up to you. I promise.” 

There was a long pause. Just when Bakugou wondered if Kirishima had fallen asleep again, the redhead’s voice proposed, “Only if you promise to come with me to therapy tomorrow.”

 _‘Shit.’_ There was no more putting it off. “Fine, whatever,” Bakugou finally complied.

Even in the dark, Bakugou could see Kirishima’s sleepy smile clearly. “Thanks, man,” the redhead beamed, snuggling into his grumpy friend’s side. His arms wrapping around him in an awkward hug. Already trying to pull him down into the bed. “You staying the rest of the night?” 

The ash-blonde didn’t bother replying. Instead, opting to playfully shove his friend until he was able to lie beside him. “Go to sleep Shitty-hair,” he yawned. His eyes were already heavy with fatigue. Falling into a deep sleep, the second his head hit the pillow. 

 

 

**_Dabi P. O. V._ **

 

The frigid December wind was starting to pick up during the witching hours early Friday morning. Not only did the air currents nip painfully at any exposed flesh, but it howled ominously through the city. If the local weatherman was correct, Japan was in for a devastating winter. Conditions such as these were enough to dissuade any sane person from venturing out for long, but a few people still mulled around despite the unfavorable weather. 

“Why are we out here again?” a female voice asked for the thousandth time that night. Her knife trailing the wall of the alley they had just turned down.

“You know why Crazy,” came Dabi’s indifferent response. He didn’t care much for her psychotic and completely unhinged personality, but even he couldn’t deny she was a useful ally in a pinch. For some reason, their all-mighty leader always tasked him to babysit Toga and Twice since he was one of the few people in their group able to tolerate their antics. 

Ever since they lost their true leader, All For One, they had been at a loss of what to do. So while he rotted in Tartarus, the rest of them were forced to go into hiding. Constantly having to look over their shoulders for the Pro-heroes hunting them down. A task that was difficult to accomplish since they also needed to build up their ranks considerably. So members were sent out to find possible new recruits while Shiagraki brainstormed ways to force the hero society to its knees. 

 _‘How did my life end up like this?’_ wondered the villain as they rounded another corner. Small amounts of steam rolling off his body as the cold air came into contact with his always overheated body. Dabi and Toga had already been roaming the streets for a few hours. Without seeing so much as a stray cat in the process. They should have known this night would have been a bust with how cold it was. He was just about to suggest heading back to their hideout when he hears an excited shriek from his partner.

“Dabi, check out that woman’s hoodie! Isn’t it adorable?” Toga giggled, playfully grabbing onto his steaming arm. Her finger pointing excitedly at a woman 30 feet from them in what appeared to be a snake-eyed hoodie. The atmosphere around her suddenly shifts. You could practically see the madness overtake her as her golden eyes glazed over. Her fangs on full display as her face contorted into her signature psychotic grin.  _“I want it.”_

“Wait--” he began, but it was too late. She had already disappeared from his side. 

Toga reappeared in front of the woman a second later. “I’ll be taking that hoodie sweety,” she announced in a deceptively cheerful voice. With the flash of her hand, she instantly buries a knife into the woman’s gut. Twisting it viciously before ripping it from her body with a spray of blood. Dosing her victim and herself in the process. A reasonable person might believe the coveted hoodie to be ruined in such a state, but to Toga, the blood added the finishing touches. 

“Thank you!” she giggled, bringing the knife to her lips. Giving it a leisurely lick as if she was tasting delicious popsicle instead of a knife dripping with blood. 

Dabi runs a hand through his dark hair. “Hey Crazy, you really need to practice some self-control,” he chastised, placing his burnt hands into his pockets. Ready to put some distance between them and this gruesome crime scene. “Hurry up, we need to--”

He’s interrupted by the abrupt sound of someone throwing up and a knife clattering to the ground. The villain looks over his shoulder to see Toga doubled over in pain. Her hands clutching at her throat desperately as she continued to throw up the contents of her stomach. Standing over her, perfectly alright, was the woman she stabbed. The hood that had recently been pulled up was now lying flat to reveal a woman in her late twenties with golden hair pulled into a long braid and matching eyes that reflected the moonlight in a way that could only be described as demonic. 

Dabi can only watch in disbelief as the woman crouched beside Toga. Her hand gently grabbing the shapeshifter’s face to make her look into her eyes. A pathetic mewl escaped the blonde’s lips as she came to the realization that she was at the mercy of this mystery woman. 

“You need to pick your targets better, sweety,” she criticized in an incredibly alluring tone. Throwing Toga’s fake term of endearment back in her face. Her thumb stroking her cheek in the same fashion a parent mind comfort a terrified child. 

' _I could incinerate her in an instant,’_ Dabi estimated to himself. If he planned it right, he could even avoid hitting Toga. She might get scorched a little, but it’s better than dying. Dabi was about to put his plan into action when her off-putting eyes flicked towards him for the first time. Sending a visible chill down his spine. 

“It’s a shame, isn’t it?” she mused aloud wistfully. Her golden gaze turning back to her prey. Her fangs glittered in the moonlight like a snake sizing up a terrified mouse. The woman’s long blood tipped nails, tracing a design onto her cheek. “Poor thing can’t even tell when someone is out of her league. How about you, boy?” 

It was then that he realized that his cheek stung. He brought a hand up to it to feel it slick with blood.  _‘When did she?’_ he wondered to himself. 

“Who are you?” Dabi finally growled back. Steadily coming to terms that they were severely outmatched. That they were both in danger of losing their lives if this encounter ended with them coming to blows. But he’d be damned if he went down without a fight. Blue flames started to dance across his palm as he awaited her next attack. Dabi absently regretting that he hadn’t had the chance to take down Endeavour before he died. 

However, her next attack never came. The woman simply shot him a wicked smile. Her hand doing a weird hand signal, which caused Toga to gasp as some of the pain in her throat lessened in intensity. Allowing his crazy teammate to breathe a little easier. 

“I’ve been called many things throughout my travels. Stealer of powers, Witch of calamity and Tamer of demons, to name a few,” the woman expressed in a tone that commanded respect. “But, you boy may call me Medusa.”

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hesci Everyone! Hello Everyone! I thought I would add some Mvskoke Language in honor of it being Native American Heritage Month here in the States. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I apologize if you thought it was long. I wanted to start moving the plot along. With the beginnings of Bakugou discovering one of the trio’s secrets as well as introduce another villain who will be playing a big part with the overall plot. 
> 
> If you recognized the fidgety hero sense that Bakugou briefly described, it is actually a Headcanon from AnonymousTwist. They are one of my favorite writers on this platform. If you enjoy Bakugou centric stories I highly recommend you check out some of their stories. They just came out with one entitled Hero Sense, which goes into further detail about the fidgety feeling Bakugou and Kyo gets when something detrimental is about to happen. Though, I’ve tweaked it a little bit to fit my needs. Basically to be the opposite of Aizawa and Tsubasa’s foresight. 
> 
> Like always, I hope you're enjoying the story so far and I hope you continue to keep reading. If you would be so kind as to give me kudos, likes or leave a review or comments on the story so far would be absolutely amazing. Not only does it help validate the work I’ve put into this story, but it also motivates me to update faster, knowing people are actually reading and enjoying it. You don’t have to sing it praises either. Let me know if the chapters are too long, if I’m moving the plot to slow or if I need to add or cut out fight scenes or personal interactions. If you have a ship or friendship that you love, I can try to work that in. 
> 
> Translation for Kyo’s cursing: Fucking shit! Shut the fuck up! Hell, this sucks! Fucking prosecuting attorney prostitute fuck! Suck a dick Sparky!


	9. One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just as he promised, Bakugou accompanies Kirishima to his therapy session with Midnight. Meanwhile, Tsubasa confronts Kyo about a disturbing dream he had and warns him not to get too familiar with Bakugou and the other future heroes.

 

 

**_Tsubasa P. O. V._ **

 

Freezing rain had started to pour down on the city in wee hours of friday morning. The rhythmic thrumming of the rain splattering against the roof only interrupted by the occasional clap of thunder echoing in the distance. The sudden downpour fizzled out the remnants of a disturbing dream. Images of blue flames, coughing up blood, and golden eyes caused Tsubasa to wake up with a start. The heavy blankets flying off him as his wings hastily unsheathed from his back in sheer panic. His amber eyes trembling as his lungs heaved in as much oxygen as they could muster. Sweat dripping off his face despite the below-freezing temperatures wafting through the open window. 

For the last two weeks, the winged shinobi had been plagued with nightmares instead of his usual visions. An embarrassing feat for a prominent Dreamwalker. One who up until this point possessed the power to control his own dream space. Perhaps it was fortunate that he wasn’t on speaking terms with his older brother. Kyo would never let him hear the end of it. 

He winces at the thought of him. _‘Actually, he’d probably be furious with me instead.’_ the brunette thought bitterly. 

While Tsubasa still received perceptive dreams regarding their mission. They were becoming garbled and less frequent. It was as if something was blocking his powers altogether. _‘Perhaps this interference was what got in the way of Aizawa’s foresight abilities?’_ Regardless of the reason, it created a backdoor for his fears to take root in his mind. 

Tsubasa had recurring nightmares of Tohru becoming the Destroyer of Worlds. Slaughtering everyone and everything in her path in her quest to bring Kyo back to life, with _him_ standing faithfully at her side. It was the vision he had seen in the moments before his brother’s death. The future that had convinced Tsubasa to risk everything to rewind time in an effort to spare his life. 

As if to punish the brunette even further for the sin he committed, this scenario constantly repeated itself in the back of his mind. Reminding Tsubasa that just because he managed to save Kyo once, this future could still come to pass if he should ever be killed again. The threat looming over them, like a deadly promise. Each time it started, he would be forced to watch the same vision play out, unable to change anything as people were massacred in front of him. It had always been the same vision playing out without change, that was until that night. 

Tonight, for the first time since the initial vision occurred, the scenery changed. Tsubasa found himself standing in the ruined remains of UA Highschool. Amber eyes watching in horror as the once sweet Tohru cut through hero after hero and student after student. Nameless beings at first, but before too long, familiar forms joined the endless sea of corpses at her feet. Even though Tsubasa knew it would be in vain, he desperately tried to move from the spot he stood rooted to the floor to no avail. 

“Tohru!” A familiar voice calls out. Giving the kunoichi pause in her murder spree. They both turn to see an unmistakable head of spiky red hair come into view. Beside him were a familiar pair of crimson eyes. Just not the ones Tohru wished to see. These ones were ablaze with unmeasurable fury. 

“You’ve got to stop this, Tohru! This isn’t you!” Kirishima pleaded desperately. 

“You think that stupid Copycat would want you to turn into this?!” Bakugou boomed beside him. They were both beat-to-hell with what appeared to be fatal injuries. Even still, instead of fighting her, they were trying to convince her to stop this madness. “You think he’d want to be brought back like this?”

His words made her hesitate. It helped that they sounded vaguely like Kyo. For a brief second, her crazed eyes became clear. But then an invisible attack lands on Tohru, breaking the spell. Angered, she grabs hold of Hagakure and impales her on a rusty pole jutting out of the pile of corpses. 

Finished, she immediately set her sights on them. Throwing her hands up in their direction to thrust a giant wall of fire at them. Bakugou Immediately steps in front of Kirishima to blast through her attack with the full power of his gauntlets. However, before either attack hits, an intense flurry of cherry blossom petals floods into his dream, chasing away the remnants of his nightmare.

As his dream breaks apart, he hears a disembodied voice. “Wake up, Tsubasa. If you don’t like what you see, change it.” Reminding him that this was merely a nightmare and nothing more. That he shouldn’t take them too seriously since it wasn’t a real vision. 

After what seemed like an eternity, Tsubasa finally managed to catch his breath. Wiping the sweat from his brow as his wings slowly laid flat against his back. The tips of them still ruffled up in a clear sign of distress. 

He glances to his right and breathes a sigh of relief when he sees the bed beside him empty. Luckily his insomniac roommate had a habit of staying up late to play videogames in the common room. The last thing he needed right then was for the previous general studies student to tell Aizawa about this little episode. 

Tsubasa tenderly plucks a feather that had been knocked loose from his abrupt waking. A frown graced his face as he regarded the small brown plume. The lighter orange coloring around the rim barely visible within the darkness of the room. His wings usually sprouted from his back the moment he fell asleep, a side effect of his foresight abilities activating, but now they sheathed themselves instead. In their travels, this had never happened before. Not only that, but his eyes were beginning to hurt the longer they stayed in this world. For the first time in his life, Tsubasa felt genuinely blind.

“I don’t know what this sudden lapse in my abilities means for us, but I can’t let this dispute between Kyo and I jeopardize our mission,” the dreamwalker whispered to himself. Committing himself to share what he experienced with his teammates to better plan what their next course of action should be. 

 

**_Kirishima P. O. V._ **

 

The soothing smell of sage and sweetgrass, along with trace amounts of Midnight’s Somnambulist quirk, gently filled the back office she used for her therapy sessions with a mesmerizing purple haze. This assortment of aromas was designed to help the students in her care relax, as well as become more at ease during this vulnerable and sometimes triggering experience. Despite the numerous scents filtering through the room, it was in no way overwhelming or overly distracting. The pleasant aroma was smoky with an underlying sweetness, reminiscent of freshly cut cedar being tossed onto a dwindling flame. A scent that never failed to soothe Kirishima after accompanying Bakugou on many of his family camping trips. A quick glance out of the corner of his eye revealed that his hot-headed friend also seemed put at ease by that familiar smell. A welcome treat after enduring a grueling test in English that had left the red-head with a mild migraine. 

 _‘Off to a good start,’_ Kirishima bemused himself. His mind absently recalling the events of the last few hours that led the duo here in the first place. 

After the exam, the rest of the school day passed by in a blur. Everyone was too exhausted to engage in the usual class hijinks after spending hours diligently studying the night before. However, an unlucky few were rudely woken up from the mysterious ruckus coming from Bakugou’s room in the wee hours of the morning. Class A’s sleepy murmurings over breakfast recounted how what started off as a few occasional loud thumps quickly escalated to what sounded like full-on brawling with things smashing and breaking. Apparently, their class president had eventually attempted to put a stop to it but had been scared off when two kunai lodged themselves through the door. Just barely missing him. That excessive response successfully thwarted any further attempts to get involved for the rest of the night. 

A few brave souls tried to pry the information about what happened from the two hotheads throughout the day. While the rest of the class shamelessly eavesdropped. However, much to the dorm’s disappointment, they both stayed tight-lipped about the incident. Only revealing that they’d be going off campus together this weekend for some obscure reason. Leaving it up to everyone’s imagination to what possibly transpired between them. 

Not even Kirishima knew the whole truth about the incident. Having felt it wasn’t his place to ask. So he had held his tongue on the subject. But the entire situation left a bitter taste in his mouth. He had been looking forward to their sleepover for a couple weeks now since he’d been barred from leaving campus until his mental health improved. Despite this, Kirishima respected Bakugou’s wishes knowing he’d only break his promise if he had a good reason to do so. Instead of intruding on Bakugou’s personal business, Kirishima had simply requested that his friend accompany him to today’s therapy session. Believing it would do Bakugou some good. 

At least, the red-head had meant it to be a suggestion. It wasn’t until the following morning when Kirishima reflected back on his actions that Kirishima realized that his hazed induced statement came off as an ultimatum. 

Guilt immediately consumed the future hero for pressuring Bakugou into something he already felt uncomfortable with. Maybe if he wasn’t so heavily drugged up from his new sleeping pills, Kirishima could have been able to suggest it in a way that didn’t seem so forceful. However, as Kirishima dwelled on his questionable actions. He had to admit there was one driving force that drove him to do what he did. _‘He looked so...distraught last night.’_

Kirishima just couldn’t shake the image of how troubled his friend had looked when he had snuck into his room that night. Even through the haziness of his mind, Kirishima recalled how Bakugou’s hair had been messier than usual. That his clothes were clearly roughed up and also torn in some places as if from a scuffle. The redhead's drowsy eyes were drawn to the frown on Bakugou’s face. His trademark scowl nowhere in sight within the room’s dim lighting. Finally, there was the way his shoulders sagged slightly in on himself. As if being crushed by the weight of the world itself. Minor details that could easily be explained away or brushed off as something trivial by someone else. But not to Kirishima. 

Perhaps it was because the shark-toothed boy had grown exceptionally close with the angered teen this past year, that he was able to discern subtle discrepancies within Bakugou’s tough-guy facade. To Kirishima, these inconsistencies were flags as angry and red as the eyes of their hot-tempered wielder.

He’d only seen Bakugou like this once before. It had been the night Bakugou confided in him. With that thought in his head, Kirishima had blurted out that he wanted Bakugou to join him to his session with Midnight. Desperate for his friend to get the psychological help he needed. While Kirishima was honored that Bakugou had trusted him enough to confide in him about his traumatic experiences, the red-head knew he wasn’t skilled enough to help him work through his trauma. Hell, he was having a hard enough time battling his own anxieties at the moment. They both needed professional guidance to help put the pieces of themselves back together again. 

Kirishima was fully ready to argue the importance of Bakugou getting the treatment he needed if the blonde had refused his request. Still, to his surprise, Bakugou agreed rather quickly. A feat that worried him to no end. He couldn’t shake the nagging suspicion that something monumental must have happened to Bakugou, aka the most stubborn person in the universe. That was the only rational conclusion for him to roll over so easily on something he’d been refusing to do for months. 

 **_‘_ ** _I hope whatever happened to him, we will be able to work through it,’_ Kirishima had whispered to himself as he led the ash-blonde through the halls. Trying his best to ignore the excited cries of their classmates who were free to enjoy the start of their weekend on that uncharacteristically sunny afternoon. A therapy session wasn’t the quality time Kirishima had been hoping for. Still, he hoped it will do them both some good regardless.

“Come on in boys. Take a seat,” the R-rated hero greeted cheerfully when they let themselves into her makeshift office. 

She gestured a hand towards the comfy looking dark purple loveseat in front of her. At the same time, she remained seated in a regular computer chair. Two inviting ceramic mugs of freshly poured tea and a plate of cookies resting on the table between them. 

Kirishima had already warned Midnight that he would be bringing Bakugou to their next session, which she thought was a marvelous idea. No doubt also believing the explosive hero could benefit from healthily working through his feelings. Her enthusiasm was evident in her spontaneous decision to replace the little beat-up chair the red-head had come to know in his past sessions. Replacing it with something a little more _“youthful.”_

When Bakugou hesitated in the doorway, the ball of sunshine gave his shoulder a gentle nudge before walking towards the couch. The hothead visibly assesses his options with narrowed eyes before letting out a _“tch.”_ With a dramatic roll of his eyes, he trudged over to the empty spot on the couch with his hands buried deep in his pockets. His feet immediately propped themselves on the edge of the coffee table.

“Nuh-uh, feet off unless you want a beating,” Midnight orders with a hint of playfulness in her voice. She shakes her faithful leather whip a couple times for good measure. Her tongue slowly licking her lips in delight. Daring him to disobey her. 

Kirishima could practically hear the blonde’s teeth grind together in agitation from where he sat beside his friend. His feet reluctantly being dragged off their perch without a word. Bakugou’s crimson eyes glaring intently into their sensei’s smug sky blue gaze as he did so.

 _‘This is going to be a very long hour,’_ thought the poor ball of sunshine as he facepalmed at his friend's excessiveness. 

After the initial exchange, the rest of the meeting continued rather smoothly. Their teacher starts with light topics such as how their school work is going or their relationships with other students, before deluging into more sensitive subjects. While the session mainly focuses on Kirishima, Midnight does a commendable job, including Bakugou in the conversation. By asking him questions every now and then or giving him a chance to offer his thoughts on the advice she offered the red-head. Allowing the experience to feel like a casual conversation between colleagues instead of thrusting Bakugou straight into the nitty-gritty of revealing his deepest darkest fears to a stranger. It was a brilliant way to introduce him to the concept of therapy. One Kirishima knew his friend appreciated, with how his body slowly relaxed overtime after realizing the meeting wouldn’t be directed at him for the time being. 

 _‘With some luck, Bakugou might feel comfortable enough to schedule his own therapy sessions,’_ Kirishima thought hopefully. A toothy grin on his face.

“How did English go today?” Midnight asked both of them before taking a sip of her tea. Her red nails standing out brightly against the muted green color of the mug. After a few moments, Midnight lets out a satisfying sigh before continuing mischievously, “Mic. told me he prepared a ‘doozy’ of an exam for you all.”

In true Bakugou fashion, the hot head muttered an irritable, “It was the easiest thing I’ve taken all term,” before the red-head had the chance to respond. He had shifted in his seat a couple inches closer to the door as he spoke. His crimson eyes glancing towards the clock, impatiently for what seemed to be the hundredth time. “Tell him to try harder.”

Kirishima chuckled awkwardly at the ash-blonde’s answer before offering his own response.“It was a little difficult for me. I didn’t get the last question at all,” he admitted as he scratched the back of his head sheepishly. Painfully aware of the growing distance between them. The corner of his smile twitching downward ever so slightly. 

When they sat on the couch, Bakugou made sure to keep a respectable distance between them despite the small size of the loveseat. Kirishima tried not to take offense at that since he knew Bakugou didn’t like them to be too close to each other in public. Especially in full view of a teacher. So the ball of sunshine forced a half-hearted smile to keep up appearances. But it still hurt. And continued to hurt with every shift further away and every glance at the clock. _‘Is Bakugou that impatient to go home with Kyo after this?’_

 _“_ You could work on your tact, young man,” their purple-haired instructor scolded bluntly. 

She gently pulled at the thin material of her sleeve to allow a little more of the purple aroma flowing from her body to mix into the air. At that amount, it wasn’t potent enough to knock them out, but enough to lower their inhibitions ever so slightly. It was common for her to strengthen the dose of her quirk when she was preparing to delve deeper into more sensitive topics. It usually took some time to affect Kirishima at this quantity, but due to his body adjusting to his new anxiety medication, Kirishima already began to feel his eyelids droop, while his mind began to fall into a hypnotic trance. 

In his stupor, Bakugou’s retort and their teacher’s equally heated response was lost on the redhead as his mind began to wander. His thoughts fixated on reviewing the events of the day. More notably, how _off_ Bakugou’s actions seemed to be. Nothing like his usual mood of " _talk to me, and you're dead."_ But instead, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible. It was the most subdued Kirishima has ever seen him. Even counting the time after his kidnapping. It was as if he wasn’t even there half the time. Doing everything in his power to distance himself from everyone else. The ash-blond just couldn’t be bothered to engage with anything around him. The fact that he’s actually participating in the therapy session was a miracle in itself. 

Come to think of it, Kyo had been acting strange as well. After oversleeping a couple hours, missing homeroom entirely as a result. He seemed to have been putting in an exorbitant amount of effort into appearing as if nothing had happened between him and his explosive friend. Despite numerous people hearing some kind of racket coming from their room the night before. Whenever someone tried to ask Kyo about it, he’d laugh off their questions and change the subject. His crimson eyes lacking their usual playfulness. It was as if they had some kind of falling out. _‘But if that were the case, why spend the weekend together?’_

Kirishima’s mind slowly became increasingly bitter when he began to dwell on his hurt feelings over their canceled plans. Ever since the class grew by four students, Bakugou and Kirishima barely had any chance to talk by themselves. While he adores Tohru and values Kyo’s friendship, he had been looking forward to some one-on-one time with his hot-headed... _friend?_  

The red-head still wasn’t entirely sure what their relationship was yet. They hadn’t had the chance to discuss it before their nightmares had started up again with renewed vigor. This hurt even more after witnessing Kyo and Tohru’s romantic relationship first hand. Kirishima wanted nothing more than to be open with his ambiguous relationship with Bakugou. Because of that, he was insanely jealous of _“Kyoru”_ and the budding friendship between the explosive teens. Feeling like he was being pushed aside for a stranger made the sturdy hero’s eyes sting with unshed tears. 

 _‘It’s kind of my fault though,’_ Kirishima mused. Recalling how he lied to the blonde when he had checked in with him that morning. Bakugou looked like he hadn’t slept a wink that night. The dark circles under his eyes standing out against his pale skin. _‘Was he too stressed out to sleep again?’_  

Seeing him like that, the red-head couldn’t help himself from trying to ease his worries. Kirishima wasn’t proud of his actions by any means. Still, he casually brushed off to what degree the change in plans had actually hurt him. Choking back his disappointment with a fake smile plastered onto his face. However, Bakugou--the ever keen observer--didn’t seem to believe him. 

 _‘He checked in with me repeatedly throughout the day,’_ Kirishima chastised himself. Guilt turning his stomach uncomfortably. It was apparent that Bakugou wanted to make sure that he was alright. That he cared about his feelings. Still, the red-head had lied through his teeth. Reassuring Bakugou that he was perfectly fine every single time it came up. 

 _‘I guess Midnight was right when she said I still had some self-worth issues that needed to be worked out.’_ Bakugou must have seen through him because he promised to make it up to him when he returned on Sunday. Stating that the therapy session was only the beginning. Kirishima was too busy getting lost in a cycle of self-deprecation to notice that Midnight and Bakugou had finished their bout of insults and had continued the appointment.

“You boys have any exciting plans for the weekend?” she practically giggled, taking another sip of her tea. Her wild imagination probably daydreaming about some youthful adventure they might be doing to relax after a grueling week of hero work. Perhaps it was a good thing Midnight didn’t know about their undefined relationship. “You both secured permission to leave campus together this weekend, correct?” 

After UA established the dorm system, it was difficult to be granted permission to leave campus outside of school activities. You had to submit a request form weeks in advance, which had to be signed by your homeroom teacher and another school administrator. You also had to be accompanied by at least one other student the entire length of the trip as a safety precaution. Because Midnight was in charge of gauging Kirishima’s mental health, she had been required to sign off on his well being. The joyous red-head had been chattering about potential plans the entire time she was signing off on it.

Still, under the effects of her quirk, which made him highly susceptible to questioning, Kirishima mumbled a glum, “Bakugou’s going home with Kyo this weekend,” before he had a chance to stop himself. The shock of his statement immediately snapping him back to reality. His hands instinctively slapping over his mouth in horror. But it was too late. The words were spoken with no way to take them back. His scarlet eyes trembled at the realization of what he’d just done. _‘Bakugou’s going to kill me…’_ he thought in horror, Not daring to sneak a glance to his right. 

Midnight’s expression fell. The slightest trace of a pout on her lips as she regarded them both thoughtfully for a moment. Kirishima’s body sank a little further into the couch under her gaze. 

“How come?” the seasoned hero inquired gently when neither boy offered an explanation. 

 “Something came up,” Bakugou grumbled under his breath. Crossing his arms with an angry huff. Becoming increasingly defensive with her prying. The sofa cushions shifting underneath them from the movement. Kirishima made no move to look up from his fixed gaze on his lap. Unable to bring himself to meet his classmate's fiery eyes. “So drop it.”

“Oh, come now,” Midnight scolded sternly, slamming her mug onto the table a little harder than she needed to. Her tone conveying that she was not afraid to put a disruptive child in his place. Her sky-blue eyes narrowing slightly at the blonde. “It’s healthy to talk these things out. In case you forgot, that’s kind of how therapy works.” 

There was another _“Tsk,”_ from Bakugou, which she rolled her eyes at. 

“Besides,” she continued, “I was speaking to Kiri,” she replied, bending over to pat her favorite patient’s knee encouragingly. After a couple pats, her hand moves up to gently grip his chin, guiding his gaze away from his lap. “Eyes up, Kiri. Heroes have to keep their heads up,” she replied with a reassuring smile. 

However, the sentiment was lost on him since the action gave both boys an uncomfortably close look at her cleavage. The would-be-heroes immediately averted their gaze. Their cheeks burning a deep shade of red as they did so. The result forced them to hold awkward eye contact for the first time since Kirishima’s initial outburst. The troubled crimson orbs staring back at him completely absent of any sort of anger. Only mild annoyance. Which was a relief, to say the least. _‘Good, he’s not angry.’_

Midnight laughs at their reactions, breaking them out of their thoughts. “So, Bakugou, why the change in plans?” she inquired gently while refilling everyone’s cups. Correct in her assumption that this was the blonde’s decision. “You still have an Audiologist appointment, don't you? I know you’re well aware that you _especially_ are not allowed to leave campus alone. ”

Kirishima watched as his friend sink a little further into his seat under their expectant gaze. His face turned away from them, making it difficult to read his expression. Though it was clear from the way his shoulders tensed and how his finger tapped on the arm of the purple loveseat in intermittent intervals, that he wished he was anywhere but there. 

“I know that,” Bakugou finally answered after a long pause. Before anyone could ask a follow-up question, he continued, “I lost a bet with that damn copycat, so I have to take him home instead this time around. I’m only here now to make it up to Kirishima,” Bakugou muttered. Finishing his statement by pointing a thumb at the red-head before placing his hand on the cushion between them. His face finally turned back to face them after his brief explanation.

 _‘He’s lying.’_ Kirishima realized with his mouth slightly agape. _‘But that can’t be. Bakugou’s not a liar.’_ The explosive hero of their class was many things; stubborn, vindictive, and insanely tenacious, but a liar wasn’t one of them. The explosive hero felt so strongly about stating the truth that he put his own life in jeopardy when he was kidnapped. All because he refused to lie to put himself in a better position with his captors. _‘What is he doing?’_

The sturdy hero feels a slight dip on the sofa. His eyes look down to see Bakugou’s hand releasing its hold from where he had been intentionally disturbing the space between them. His fingers subtly crossed. Their way of signaling to each other that they would explain something when they were in private. 

Before Midnight had a chance to see his signal, he irritably snaps, “Now last I checked this session wasn’t about putting me on blast.” His arms immediately cross above his head as he leans back against the purple sofa. A leg coming up to rest across the other to complete his usual sitting position. “So hurry up and get to work on fixing Kiri.”

The silence in the room after Bakugou’s remark was deafening as everyone processed what he just said. Even the blonde seemed surprised by his own words. Midnight, of course, recovered first and squealed loudly at the hothead’s slip of the tongue thanks to her quirk. While Kirishima couldn’t stop himself from chuckling at how red Bakugou’s cheeks were turning from the embarrassment of saying his nickname in public. 

“Shut up!” Bakugou ordered angrily. “Stupid useless quirk!” 

It took them a while to quiet down their laughter. When they finally did, Midnight continued by asking Kirishima how he’d been sleeping since their last session. She doesn’t mention his night terrors or him being prescribed anxiety and sleeping medication in case Bakugou wasn’t aware of that. It was unnecessary in this case since the red-head had shared everything with Bakugou already. However, her consideration of his privacy made his heart flutter with happiness. 

“I’ve been sleeping much better after taking the medication,” Kirishima replied with a grin. He risks a glance at his classmate, who was listening with feigned indifference. Hoping to steer the conversation toward a productive topic, he continued with, “I still have nightmares, but they aren’t as frequent or vivid as they were before.” 

The R-rated hero nods at his statement. “That’s to be expected. You’ve only been taking them for a couple weeks now,” the dark-haired woman explained as she scribbled a quick note on her clipboard. Offering him a reassuring smile when she was finished. “Though I’m thrilled to hear that your dreams aren’t as extreme as they were before. That’s some amazing progress already.” 

Kirishima heard a soft annoyed snort from Bakugou. To him, anything slower than instant was unacceptable for this type of problem. _‘Understandable when you consider what he’s lived through,’_ Kirishima thought glumly. 

Midnight quickly offered him a few tips on how he could deal with his nightmares in the future before delving deeper into heavier topics. The red-head soaking up every bit of information she provided. Harnessing every once of his willpower to refrain from glancing at Bakugou as they discussed nightmares. Hoping that his friend was listening to her advice as intently as he was. 

“Sweetie, could you tell us when your last nightmare was and what it was about?”

“I believe it was last week after I used my Unbreakable form during training,” Kirishima replied after a brief moment of deliberation. That was definitely a low point in his training. He had stepped in to shield his teammates from one of Midoriya’s supercharged kicks when he lost his footing and was thrown backward from the force. He was perfectly fine but ended up injuring Ojiro when he collided into him in that form. A quick trip to Recovery Girl later, and he was back in tip-top shape. But it didn’t help Kirishima feel like any less of a liability to his teammates. “I guess it triggered my memories of fighting Kendo Rappa?” 

She scribbled another quick note on her clipboard. “Do you feel comfortable describing what happened during your dream for us?” she asked in a soothing tone. 

The red-head nodded. Without missing a beat, he begins to describe his experience fighting the villain in his Unbreakable form in as much detail as he could muster. He’d already told Bakugou about the incident multiple times after exceptionally vivid night terrors. Even after hearing about it countless times, Bakugou still listened intently every single time he brought it up. Ready to offer support whenever he needed it. 

Halfway through his retellings, Kirishima unconsciously brings his knees into his chest. His arms wrapping around to hold them against himself protectively. The growing lump in his throat caused the words to catch audibly every now and then as he recounted how in his dream, he fought alone. If either of them noticed, they had the decency not to show it. Kirishima reluctantly explained how he felt outmatched without Fatgum there to support him. The result being his body and fighting spirit breaking under pressure. His nightmare continued on for what seemed like forever as he was beaten to a bloody pulp. Leaving him feeling completely useless long after he’d finally woken up. 

Trying to stay positive, the red-head forces a small smile onto his face. “I’m so thankful for all the friends I’ve made at UA. They’re all so supportive of me,” Kirishima admits as he rests his chin on his knees. His arms tighten around himself slightly. “They’ve all pushed me to better myself. I never would have gotten as strong as I have without them encouraging me along the way.” 

He shifts his gaze to his best friend. “In fact, Bakugou was the one who helped me come up with my Unbreakable form in the first place. If it wasn’t for him and everyone else, I don’t think I would still be here today,” he admits quietly. A sad smile on his face. Out of the corner of his eye, he can see a hint of pink coloring Bakugou’s face. 

“It’s important to have a network of people you can trust and rely on,” Midnight praised in a soothing tone. Her hand straightening an old photo of her, Aizawa, and Present Mic. back in their UA days on the table in front of them. “It’s equally important for you to be there for them as well.” 

“I know… and I try my best to be there for everyone when I can,” Kirishima whispers back somberly. A dark shadow falls across his face as he remembers how his attempts to help Bakugou resulted in his nightmares coming again worse than before. Suddenly finding it hard to make direct eye contact with either of them, his gaze falls to the floor. 

“Is anything else worrying you, sweetie?” Midnight questioned, noticing his change in expression. 

Not wanting to reveal Bakugou’s nightmares to her without the blonde’s permission, he focuses the conversation on himself. “It’s just--I can’t shake the feeling that I’m not progressing as fast as everyone else. If I can’t keep up, I feel that everyone will eventually leave me behind,” Kirishima admits over the lump in his throat. 

“I’ve already told you that’s not going to happen!” Bakugou snapped, whirling to face him. His igniting fist slamming against the arm of the loveseat. Scorching a perfect ring into the new material much to Midnight’s disappointment. 

“How do you know that?” Kirishima asked so quietly they had to strain to hear him. His voice cracking slightly while his body curled in on itself even further. Recognizing his own self-worth had always been his most significant shortcoming. The familiar sensation of his old self trying to drag him back down into the endless abyss of depression that ruled over his middle school day’s tightened its hold over him. 

The red-head is startled back to reality when a steady hand roughly yanks his arm away from himself. “Knock it off, Shitty-Hair!” Bakugou ordered, his voice slightly distressed. However, instead of the hothead’s words, Kirishima was focused on the drops of crimson that rolled off the hardened tips of his fingers. He hadn’t realized that he had activated his quirk in his vulnerable emotional state to absently scratch the top of his hand while he spoke. His extremely capable nails made quick work of his hand, which was now slick with blood. 

“Stop shitting yourself!” the explosive hero chided harshly. His eyes practically on fire with how angry he was. Bakugou tightened his grip on his wrist until Kirishima released the effects of his quirk. “Do you honestly think that any of those idiots would ever leave you alone? Hell, I’ve been trying everything I can think of to chase them off for the better part of a year. Only to be surrounded by even more sidekicks of all hours of the day!” 

“Bakugou--” The R-rated hero warned. Straightening up in her seat to rein in the hot-tempered teen only to be rudely cut off. 

“Besides,” he interjected, his voice growing louder as if to forcibly drive his words through his hard-headed friend. “In case you forgot, you’re one of the strongest members of our class. One of the only ones to ever get a win over me in training. You doubting your abilities indirectly undermines the quality of mine. Are you saying I’m a weakling?” he challenged through grit teeth. 

“W-what? Of course not!” Kirishima stammered. Having trouble following the blonde’s statements.

“Damn straight,” Bakugou smirked. Finally releasing his hold on the other teen’s wrist. His crimson eyes softening ever so slightly. “So by that logic, you aren’t one either.” 

In a somber tone, Bakugou continued, “I don’t associate with weaklings. I never want to hear you say that you don’t have what it takes to be a hero ever again. You got that?” 

Kirishima could only nod. _‘Bakugou…’_

 “Again, your delivery could use some work Bakugou, but for the most part, I agree with your sentiment,” Midnight sighed after a moment of awkward silence. She pulls a first aid kit from under her chair. This, unfortunately, wasn’t the first time that Kirishima had accidentally activated his quirk when overly emotional. So she was better prepared to deal with incidents like this when they transpire. As Midnight tenderly cleaned and wrapped his wound, she continued to build off the statements Bakugou had previously made. 

“Kirishima, listen to us. You are very much appreciated by those around you. I want you to trust their judgment of you as a person until you are better equipped to recognize it for yourself.” Her gaze then shifted to regard both teens at once. “No one in this world can truly survive by themselves. The relationships we make throughout our lives inspire us to be something better than what we are. I want you both to remember that it’s not a sign of weakness to depend on others. Understand?”

“Yes,” they both answered, though at different levels of enthusiasm. 

Finishing her role as medic Midnight decides to change the topic to a lighter subject for the remainder of their shared appointment. Choosing to return to this issue when Bakugou wasn’t present. “Now, then, how about we finish our session by discussing how you’re getting along with your new classmates?” Midnight asked cheerfully as she packed up her medical kit. 

Kirishima perks up a little at this. Anything to distract him from dwelling on himself was always ideal. “I’ve really enjoyed their company so far,” he answered with a genuine smile. He summarizes for their teacher that he’d gotten a few fighting pointers from Tsubasa. That he enjoyed hanging out with Kyo after class, but mostly that he absolutely adored Tohru. 

“Something is soothing about her. She seems to spread happiness wherever she goes.”

The red-head feels a shift to his right. Glancing in that direction, he sees his explosive friend’s scowl return to his face. His arms crossed in front of him instead of in his pockets like they usually were. _‘What’s his deal? Does he have a problem with Tohru now too?’_

Noticing this change as well, Midnight immediately asks for his opinion.

“How about you, Bakugou? How do you feel about them?”

Kirishima had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. It was a terrible habit he’d picked up from Bakugou over the last few months. Everyone knew that the ash-blonde’s default response was usually dripping with dangerous levels of sarcasm. _‘Come on, we know he’s going to say something like them being annoying like the rest of the class.’_ However, what the ash-blonde responded next was anything but expected. 

Bakugou remains silent for a few seconds. His lips pursed tightly into a scowl. With a huff, he hooks his foot around one of the straps of their school bags, pulling them closer to use as an impromptu footrest. His hands once again finding their way into his pockets. Bakugou then slouches further into his seat, Something Kirishima had come to understand meant he felt uncomfortable. 

The future hero basically had two functions in any social situation. He would either explode in an attempt to cover up his emotions, or he would become quiet and super docile. Doing everything in his power to blend into the background as if to hide from whatever was making him anxious. That's what he was doing now. Feigning an indifferent attitude so no one would discover the anxieties hiding just beneath the surface. 

“Everything about them is fucking irritating,” Bakugou finally answered. His voice coming out as a low growl to disguise any irregular fluctuations. There was a slight movement in his pockets from him balling his fists. “Their personalities, their powers, and their presence here--” his crimson eyes widened for a fraction of a second as if just realizing what he was saying.

 “--at a hero school I mean,” he clarified a little too quickly. 

Midnight sighs at this. “Yes, their presence here has rubbed a lot of people the wrong way,” she admitted reluctantly. Her fingers lacing together in front of her, making the handcuffs on her wrists clink softly with the movement. “Aizawa’s received no end of headaches bringing them here. But he believes it to be necessary, so I trust in his judgment.” 

“Trust is different than blind faith. Did he happen to tell you why he’s brought them here?” Bakugou spat back. Irritation making his hair stand on end slightly. Reminiscent to the way Kyo’s does when he’s worked up. The hot-head continued, “Or are you in the dark as much as the rest of us?” 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Kirishima questioned. Deciding to step in before Bakugou and Midnight could get caught up in another argument. He rested a hand onto his friend’s shoulder to calm him down. “Come on, man, this isn’t the place to pick a fight.” 

However, their teacher wasn’t provoked by his remarks. “It’s alright, Kirishima,” the R-rated hero replied, raising a hand to call off the red-head. Signaling to him that she’ll take it from there. “What’s this really about Bakugou? What’s actually troubling you about them?” she asked carefully. 

The explosive teen immediately backed off. Not wanting to answer a question that revealed how he felt. Most likely realizing that it was Midnight’s quirk that was making him more talkative than usual. His eyes had been steadily drooping as time went on. 

“Nothing--” he tried to lie, but was interrupted. 

“Nuh-uh, you don’t get to brush this off Bakugou,” Midnight cuts in sternly with a wave of her finger. She leans forward in her chair until only the blonde was within her line of sight. If it had been anyone else, she might have laid an encouraging hand on their knee. But this was Bakugou we were talking about, so she kept her hands to herself. “You’ve been hyper-aware of them ever since they’ve arrived at UA. Don’t think we teachers haven’t noticed.” 

The intensity of her sincere sky-blue eyes chased off Bakugou’s agitated crimson gaze. His eyes flickering to Kirishima for a second in search of support. He looked utterly torn. The explosive hero obviously needed to vent but didn’t have the foggiest idea of how to start. Kirishima gave him an encouraging nod. Letting him know if he needed to get something off his chest, this would be the place to do it. So with an exasperated sigh, Bakugou turned back to their teacher. 

“Bakugou, why do you find them so irritating?” She repeated, replicating his choice of words. Taking the time to transfer the various items off her lap to the table between them. 

The hot head glared at her silently before reluctantly muttering, “They aren’t heroes.” His tone, however, sounded like he was asking a question rather than answering one. One he should have known the answer to already since he declared as much on their first day. “So why the hell were they brought to a school for heroes?” 

The energy in the room suddenly shifts. The air suddenly thick with a tension Kirishima couldn’t place. His head dumbly looking from one to the other as he became a confused spectator caught between two rival forces. 

“No, they aren’t heroes. At least not in a conventional way,” Midnight answered carefully. Her eyes studied the blonde’s face intensely. Judging from her expression, she had been made aware of Bakugou’s previous outburst about Shinobi during their initial introduction. There was a slight tensing of her shoulders as she mentally prepared herself to dive deeper into the conversation. “Though at the moment they are responsible for overseeing your training to become the best heroes you all can be. That in itself sounds fairly heroic to me.” 

Bakugou rolled his eyes at that. “Is that what you actually believe? Or is that something Aizawa told you to say?” he barked back. 

She ignored his statement. “It seems like you’re more angry with Aizawa than you are with your new classmates,” Midnight countered deviously. 

“Don’t pretend that you know anything about me. I’ve got enough anger to be annoyed by the whole lot of them,” snapped the blonde. His teeth grinding together in a combination of anger and frustration. “They’re hiding something from everyone. They should know that nothing good ever comes from keeping secrets.” 

“It almost sounds like you speak from experience.” The R-rated hero insinuated with a soft laugh. A hint of a knowing smile forming across her features. Bakugou immediately bristled in his seat at her words. His quirk sparking to life slightly across palms in response. Kirishima tried his best to look inconspicuous as well, but he could feel nervous sweat collecting on his forehead. After a few uncomfortable seconds, she let out a dismissive laugh, “Relax Bakugou, I was only teasing!” 

The ash-blonde didn’t appreciate that jab at all. Sulking, Bakugou slunk a little further into his chair, intending to keep his mouth shut to prevent him from further incriminating himself. But their teacher wasn’t about to let him get away without voicing his anxieties. 

“Are you going to tell me what has you so riled up willingly? Or am I going to have to use more of my quirk to make you more compliant?” she threatened. Her eyes still scanning him thoroughly for any clues to explain his out of character behavior. 

Red eyes narrowed skeptically at her. Probably wondering if she would really break the school policy prohibiting teachers from the excessive use of their quirk on a student. It seemed that Bakugou didn’t put it past her, which was probably a wise choice all things considered. Kirishima could see the gears turning in his head as he determined the best way to phrase his answer. “You don't think it’s a little problematic for UA to associate with individuals that kill for a living?” 

“Not if doing so helps protect our students. Besides, their profession isn't the only aspect that defines them,” The R-rated hero began cautiously, taking a sip of her mostly cold tea. She made a face at the bitter flavor, then placed the mug down gently. “They’re still in training just like the two of you. And just like you, their lives can easily go in many different directions.” 

The Ash-blonde’s eye twitched in irritation at her nonchalant response. “Are you saying that you think it’s acceptable to kill people? Honorable even?” 

“I don’t recall ever saying that,” the dark-haired woman interjected. Preventing him from putting words in her mouth. “But to answer your question, I believe it’s sometimes unavoidable.” This answer didn’t seem to sit well with Bakugou, for his scowl deepened.

Worried about his friend Kirishima spoke up, “Come on, Bakugou, what does this have to do with Kyo and the others?” he asked baffled. Perhaps it was Midnight’s quirk affecting his train of thought, but Bakugou seemed to be making less sense by the second. _‘If he has such a problem with them, why would he willingly leave campus with Kyo this weekend?’_  

“It has everything to do with them!” the explosive hero answered, turning toward the red-head. His hands unconsciously coming out of his pockets to wipe some of the excess sweat from his palms. “UA has been getting outsmarted by villains at every turn, don’t you think it’s a little risky to bring strangers into our midst?” 

“But we know them, they aren’t killers! They’re just like us!” Kirishima argued back, ready to defend their new friends to the bitter end. Without meaning to, the red-head bared his sharp teeth to make himself look more threatening to emphasize his point. That, coupled with Kirishima raising his voice, managed to take the blonde back for a second. He recovered quickly, though. Coming back at full force. 

“I’m not doubting their character!” Bakugou argued back. “It’s their profession that’s fucked up.”

“Are you afraid of them?” Midnight inquired, inserting herself in their argument. 

“Of course not!” Bakugou yelled as he whirled towards her. 

She rolls her eyes at his outburst. Making an exaggerated gesture of unplugging her ears from the sudden spike in volume. “Do you think they are evil?” 

“No, that's not it!” Bakugou growled. Growing increasingly frustrated with not being able to find the right words for what he was feeling. Bottling his emotions for 16 years, doing him no favors in this instance. Movement caught his eye. Glancing down, Kirishima saw that his knuckles were turning white with how hard they were gripping his knees. The sturdy hero shot him a concerned look that told him to take it easy. 

The blonde _“tsked”_ at him but eventually let out a long angry sigh before continuing, “I’ve spent enough time with them to know that they aren’t evil,” Bakugou explained slowly. His voice was full of irritation, but also with a hint of another emotion, Kirishima couldn’t quite place. “That quirk copycat is an idiot, but also too loyal for his own good. The girl, on the other hand, cares for the stray cat living behind the dorms, so she obviously doesn’t have an evil bone in her body. That leaves Feathers, who is the definition of unending patience since he can deal with Deku’s nonstop rambling.” 

The R-rated hero was briefly shocked into stunned silence. Caught off guard by his detailed testimony. “Then what’s the problem?” she asked completely baffled. 

“My _problem_ is that they are basically weapons for hire. If they contract themselves out to the wrong people, they could be forced to carry out tasks of mass destruction. And no one seems concerned about this. Not even them,” Bakugou practically growled. 

It was then that it hit them. Bakugou wasn’t worried that they might _become_ a deadly threat to them. He was worried _about_ them. Concerned how the role that they were assigned might affect them in the future. Worried that they weren’t cut out for the type of work they had made their life’s mission. His interpretation of them as people, contradicting the concept of the human weapons they were supposed to be. Therefore convincing him that they were going to suffer someday because of it.

At some point in the last month, he had accidentally become friends with these strangers. Individuals he swore he didn’t want anything to do with because of the role they played in society. Convinced he was disgusted by their _supposed_ disregard for human life. However, when Bakugou was forced into close proximity with them, he realized they had just as much humanity as the rest of them. 

This realization must have terrified Bakugou. It contradicted what his idea of a hero was. More problematic, it made him realize that the villains he hated with every fiber of his being, might harbor a shred of humanity as well. Bakugou’s perception of what a hero was had always been a significant part of his identity and the trio’s very confusing existence just rocked it to its core. 

Meanwhile, Kirishima sat dumbfounded at the scene, unfolding before him. Kirishima never imagined that Bakugou would share so much of himself during his first-ever therapy appointment. Especially not on a topic like this. Kirishima wasn’t sure if he should be proud of Bakugou for opening up or concerned that he had more issues that he wasn’t even aware existed. The red-head had been jealous of Bakugou and Kyo’s fast friendship, but to think he also harbored these confusing feelings about him as well. ‘How could I not know that Bakugou was struggling this whole time?’ 

The sudden movement of Bakugou’s hands balled into fists on his knees caught his attention. “At the same time. I can’t exactly ignore that killing is what villains do,” Bakugou proceeded to explain quietly. The blonde’s once fiery eyes, now troubled, stared at his feet. Stubbornly refusing to meet any of their gazes. It was a level of vulnerability Kirishima doubted any faculty member had ever witnessed before. It made him wonder how much of this was due to Midnight’s somnambulist quirk or the weight of Bakugou’s growing list of anxieties. 

“If UA is a place for Heros, shouldn’t we hate the very sight of them?” He asked no one in particular. The question was phrased like he was asking on behalf of other heroes, but it didn’t take a genius to realize he was speaking about himself. On the surface, his voice was neutral, but to the red-head, it sounded uncertain. A completely foreign concept for him. 

Kirishima wished more than anything that he had the words that his friend needed to hear right then. To be able to reassure him in some way, _anyway_. But his mind was a complete blank. He felt his hardened fingers effortlessly dig into the cushions in frustration at his inability to help his friend. If only consoling, Bakugou was as easy as destroying furniture. The red-head turned to their teacher, hoping she would be able to provide the answers he lacked. 

Midnight’s expression was difficult to read as she gathered her thoughts together for a response. She rested her chin on top of her intertwined fingers while she regarded them. It almost looked as though she was staring at something past their shoulders despite nothing noticeable being there. After what seemed like an eternity, she finally spoke up. 

“Bakugou, you’re a smart boy, it's hard to believe that someone with an eye for color can only see the world in black and white,” their modern art history teacher smiled. Referring to the photographs he had turned in for a final project last semester. In true Bakugou fashion, it had contradicted everything she had taught that quarter. Still, it had impressed her all the same. Earning him the highest score in the class. Something he bragged about to the whole dorm by taping his project to the communal refrigerator. He continued to stare at his feet, but the tips of his ears began to turn pink with her words. 

“You interned with Best Jeanist, correct?” She asked suddenly, leaning back in her chair. 

“What if I did?” He answered defensively. 

“He has a great track record of mentoring students. I can tell he’s influenced your view of what makes a hero.” Midnight praised in a soothing voice. “What ideology did he instill in you?” 

Crimson orbs finally rise to meet her stare. “He told me that Heroes and Villains are two sides of the same coin,” Bakugou answered in a neutral tone. The muscles in his crossed arms relaxing a degree as understanding spread across his face.

“Precisely, ” Midnight praised cheerfully. “When it comes down to it, Heroes and Villains are actually remarkably similar. But it’s how we choose to act in any situation that truly defines us.” 

The explosive hero contemplated her words in thoughtful silence. 

Relieved that he was taking her words to heart, she continued. “Bakugou, I know that the shinobi’s presence here is forcing you to reevaluate your views. That it can feel like a detrimental blow to your identity for a belief you’ve cultivated your entire life to be challenged so suddenly. But I want you to understand that people seldom fall neatly into a single category.” 

“That being said, I don’t believe that killing automatically makes someone a villain. There have been incidents where heroes have been responsible for taking life, just like there have been instances of villain’s saving people on occasion. It’s important to remember that one trait or act does not define a person. And that one’s opinion of a person is not the same for everyone.” 

Both teens were staring at her intently now. Soaking up her words eagerly.  

“Take All Might, for example. To most people, he was the Symbol of Peace. A true hero in the hearts of millions,” their teacher proceeded, motioning to a poster of the previous Number One Hero. Too busy with her explanation to notice that Bakugou frowned at the past tense of her statement. “However, to the League of Villains, he served as the Symbol of Oppression that they wished to overthrow. To them, he was a _“villain”_ that needed to be conquered. In that respect, we are all heroes and villains in the eyes of any given person.”

A comfortable silence filled the room as her words resonated in their minds. The last of the sage had burned off a long time ago, leaving a lingering scent in its wake. 

“This seems like a good enough spot as any to end our session,” Midnight announced, glancing at the clock. Kirishima turned to check the time himself, and sure enough, they had gone over their allotted time by 15 minutes. Midnight was just about to dismiss them for the day when Bakugou spoke up. 

“Sensei,” He began, surprising them both for suddenly using an honorific to address her. “How much do you know about them? Do you trust them?” Bakugou asked while his finger tapped the arm on the loveseat. The previous accusing and condescending tone completely absent from his voice. 

“I don’t know a lot about Binoshi or the Shinobi they train,” Midnight admitted, leaning back in her chair. She, of course, didn’t owe them a response since this was sensitive information. However, she ultimately decided it was necessary for them to move forward. “But from what I’ve heard, their training is crueler than we could ever know. It’s a miracle they are as cheerful as they are. A normal person should’ve been crushed under the weight of such hardships by now, but for whatever reason, they haven’t. From what I’ve witnessed, I believe them to be genuinely good people.”

Bakugou regards her for a long moment then gives her a curt nod. Determining that she was telling the truth, though he still looked like he had his doubts. 

“If that’s everything, I’d like to end with one final question,” Midnight announced. Her gaze was fixed on Bakugou, who just glared back at her silently. “If you have such conflicting thoughts concerning Kyo, why did you agree to bring him home for the weekend?” the R-rated hero questioned. Her eyes kind as she regarded her new patient thoughtfully. 

“I wanted to see for myself that he’s who he claims to be,” He answered with renewed determination. “That he’s not just some mindless tool to be ordered around. That he has a will of his own.” 

_‘That’s one way to do it, I guess?’_

“I can’t exactly say I condone your decision to go through with this, but I won’t stop you.” She admitted. Holding a hand up to stop him when he showed signs of protesting. “That being said, can I offer you some advice?” 

He remained silent. Only raising an eyebrow at her in response. 

Midnight took his silence as a sign to continue. “I would encourage you to speak with Kyo. Try to understand why he became a shinobi and what his philosophies are. If you couple that knowledge with your previous interactions with him, instead of his background, you’ll be able to gauge what kind of person he is. In the end, Bakugou, it’s _you_ who must decide what his character is, not me, not Aizawa, not even Kirishima. Promise me you’ll take these words to heart?” 

Bakugou rolled his eyes but gave a reluctant nod. 

Midnight smiled at that. Her face looked drained all of a sudden. She then gestured a hand to finally dismiss them. It only took a few moments to gather their possessions after their initial stretch. His muscles were extremely sore from sitting for so long. Kirishima had just stepped out into the hall when he felt Bakugou stop short of the door. 

The red-head turned around to see him with his hands in his pockets. An unreadable expression on his face. The blonde then looked over his shoulder to offer their teacher one last statement. “I don’t doubt that Aizawa had a reason for bringing them here, and maybe he thinks he’s protecting everyone by keeping it a secret from us. But what he’s really conveying is that he doesn’t trust us with the truth.” 

Bakugou’s crimson eyes hardened dangerously. “If he continues to treat us with kid gloves, he’s actually encouraging a lack of communication between teachers and students alike. So tell him to get off his high horse and fill the rest of us in on his plan.” 

“I’ll be sure to pass on the message,” Midnight promised, glancing somewhere past them. 

With that, Bakugou finally left to join Kirishima in the hall. Where he was immediately bombarded with questions from his redheaded friend. Too busy talking to notice that a shadowy figure snuck into the room, they just exited. 

 

**_Bakugou P. O. V._ **

  
  


The halls of UA were eerily quiet when they exited the teacher’s lounge. Only the occasional student from the Support or Business courses passed by them as they made their way back to the dorms. The ash-blonde tried not to dwell on the fact that the other sidekicks had already started their weekend. Either by making last-minute arrangements before heading off-campus for the weekend or helping to set up for their classes weekly game/movie night. _‘So glad I’m missing that.’_

Despite the lack of people shuffling around the halls, Bakugou found the world too loud and bright for its own good. The after-effects of their teacher’s Somnambulist quirk left his mind feeling hazy and disoriented as if coming out of a bad dream. If he had ever experimented with alcohol, he might have compared it to being hungover. _‘This fucking sucks,’_ Bakugou cursed to himself as his fingers squeezed the bridge of his nose to relieve the pressure of his migraine. Just what he needed before his excursion with Kyo. 

It could have been worse, he supposed. He could have accidentally spilled the trio’s otherworldly secret to Midnight instead of extracting information from her. Bakugou hadn’t expected her quirk to affect his body so strongly at such a low dose. Still, after being exposed to it for so long, it eventually slipped past his defenses. 

 _‘It’s a good thing she sucked at asking questions,’_ the explosive hero scowled to himself. Referencing how Midnight prioritized his mental wellbeing over pursuing the truth behind his many jabs towards her and Aizawa. She wasn’t incompetent by any means. Of all the teachers at UA, she was only a step behind All Might and Aizawa on Bakugou’s respect scale after all the time and effort she put into helping Kirishima. Because of this, he knew that their teacher must have seen right through him as he prodded her for information. 

“That bitch!” Bakugou cursed under his breath. 

“Dude, that’s no way to talk about a teacher!” The red-head beside him scolded in a hushed tone. He looked around frantically to make sure no one had overheard. Not that it mattered. Bakugou would gladly repeat it loudly if anyone had the guts to confront him about it.

His face must have conveyed as much because Kirishima immediately pouted cutely at him. “Fine, whatever. Let's just head back before Mina organizes a search party for us.” 

They passed the first part of their walk with pleasant small talk. Bakugou’s mind steadily clearing up a little more with each step. By the time the brisk December air hit their exposed faces, it felt as though the rest of the lingering effects had been expelled out of them. The hothead stopped to take in a few deep breaths. Relishing in the comforting feeling of being free of Midnight’s influence. 

“So, what did you think about the therapy session?” Kirishima asked, breaking into his thoughts. One of his fingers scratched at his chin sheepishly, which highlighted the fresh bandages that wrapped around his hand. “I know it got a little intense at times, but I swear Midnight knows what she’s doing. And she’s normally not so forceful either.” 

Bakugou tore his eyes away from the redhead's injury. “It wasn't the worst thing I’ve ever done,” he admitted irritably. While the future hero didn’t appreciate Midnight dissecting his mind and forcing him to talk about his emotions. Bakugou couldn’t deny she provided some much-needed information for both of them. 

 

**_Flashback_ **

Shitty-hair had just successfully steered the conversation to the topic of nightmares. Bakugou was actually impressed that he managed to keep his voice level when doing so. However, the intensity in which he stared at Midnight as she spoke to them was painfully obvious that he was desperately trying not to look at him. Hopefully, their teacher would chalk that up to him, focusing all his energy on cataloging all the information being unloaded onto them. Again, the lengths Kirishima went to aid his friends surprised Bakugou. It was completely unnecessary in this case. But also very endearing... in an annoying sort of way. 

The ash-blonde pretended not to notice his friend’s actions. Instead, opting to slouch in his seat, acting bored out of his mind, as he carefully memorized everything being said. Every now and then sneaking a glance at the R-rated hero to see if she was taking any particular notice of him or not. As far as he could tell, Midnight had been too preoccupied with examining Kirishima’s mental health to pay any attention to him. Which was to be expected, but still managed to piss him off. 

Bakugou had rolled his eyes at her roundabout way of asking if the read-head still suffered from night terrors. Despite her prescribing him two different types of anxiety and sleeping medications. He understood that she did that to be considerate of his privacy, but what was the point? The whole class knew he had mandatory therapy sessions after the incident a couple months ago. At least everyone had the decency of keeping their mouth shut about it in front of Kirishima. Bakugou had seen to that after drop-kicking that disgusting grape onto the roof after hearing him make snide comments about it in passing. Bakugou had to suppress an annoyed grunt, ‘As _if I don’t know everything there is to know about him. The idiot’s an open book.’_

“How about we discuss some techniques to wake--or calm yourself--in the event you find yourself in another nightmare?” Midnight had suggested after confirming how Kirishima had been sleeping lately. 

“Can you really do that?” Kirishima asked in a puzzled tone. Jolting Bakugou back to reality. It had never occurred to him that he’d be able to wake himself up from a dream. He cursed himself for shifting slightly in his seat at the notion. Hoping no one noticed the momentary chink in his indifferent appearance. “Will they really make nightmares go away?”

Her lips pressed together into a hard line for a moment. “These techniques are not a magical fix. They will take some effort to accomplish, and there is no guarantee they will work for you at all. But they could, at the very least, remind you that what you are experiencing isn’t real,” she cautioned. Her blue eyes studying the eager face of her charge, who nodded in understanding. 

Midnight explained that the first and most crucial step was to become lucid in their dreams. That if they couldn’t recognize that they were dreaming, then they would be unable to effectively put these methods into practice. To establish if something was a dream, she instructed them to pay extra close attention to their surroundings. _Does anything feel off? Are the laws of physics behaving as they’re supposed to? Are individuals depicted acting out of character?_  

The R-rated hero warned them that nightmares that stem from traumatic events were, unfortunately, harder to dismiss as regular nightmares. _‘shit,’_ Bakugou cursed bitterly. Because these nightmares stem from fear, the brain distorts the experience or blocks out specific details overtime to protect itself from further harm. 

However, because of this, they often come with a sense of dejavu, which can be used to snap yourself into lucidness by correctly predicting events as they happen. Realizing that it might be painful, she gently encouraged them to inspect these events thoroughly to see if they are happening exactly as they remembered. If situations are warped or worsening, then it will most likely be a dream.

“If you get the inclination that you might be dreaming, I want you to vocalize that assumption. Saying this will focus your mind squarely on apprehending if you are in a dream or not,” Midnight explained cautiously. Her eyes searching for any sort of distress on the teenager’s faces. “At this point, you should instinctively get a better grasp on your mind. Your brain should automatically begin to point out flaws in that reality with earnestness. At that time, your next priority is to wake up.” 

“And how’s he supposed to do that?” Bakugou asked impatiently. Startling Kirishima slightly with the suddenness of his statement. It seemed that the red-head was too busy soaking up the information to relay back to him later that he had forgotten that Bakugou was there as well. 

Midnight regards Bakugou for a moment before answering his question, which made Bakuogu uneasy, but he willed his face not to show it. “Kiri has multiple options,” she replied in a neutral tone, but there was a hint of a smirk on her face, which pissed him off tremendously. She casually leaned back into her seat while simultaneously crossing her legs as she spoke. “The easiest option would be to concentrate on waking up while blinking repeatedly. Using as much willpower as he can muster. Though if this fails, there are many other options to choose from.” 

She lists off the other possibilities at Kirishima’s disposal. From focusing energy on reading something like a book or sign since studies have proven that people have trouble reading in their dreams. Apparently, continuously concentrating on words activates the part of your brain that disables REM sleep. If that fails, Midnight advises them to try to take control of the dream themselves, for it is their mind after all. To exert their will toward changing the dream or at least turning the scenario in their favor. 

“What about falling? I heard that sometimes wakes people up,” Kirishima offered in between techniques. 

The pro-hero shook her head. “I wouldn’t advise it,” she answered carefully. 

“Why not?” Bakugou muttered back. 

She let out a heavy sigh. “While falling from a high vantage point or even dying might wake you up in theory, it’s not practical in our profession,” Midnight warned in a guarded tone. “I don’t want you to grow accustomed to any sort of self-harm to wake up from nightmares. Not only would that have a negative effect on you over time, but it could put your life in danger if you are ever hit by a villain’s quirk that puts you in a trance. That type of conditioning could very well get you killed someday. Do you understand?” 

Both teens mumbled an obedient, “Yes.” 

“If all else fails. Your last option is to wait until the dream ends,” she admits sadly, resting a hand on each of their knees. Bakugou had to fight his instinct to pull away from the comforting touch. Midnight’s reassuring gaze regarding them both in such a way that Bakugou was convinced she had seen through his indifferent facade. “It’s not ideal, but it’s all you can do in that scenario. It’ll be painful, but I want you to remember that these images can’t harm you.” 

 

**_End of Flashback_ **

 

“Thanks again for coming with me, Bakugou. It really means a lot,” Kirishima chirped happily. His smile was so bright that Bakugou had to look away or risk being blinded by it. 

“It was no big deal,” he muttered back. Silently berating himself for belittling what the red-head just said. Though it didn’t look like the ball of sunshine noticed at all. 

Kirishima grinned even bigger. “That’s great to hear!” He praised utterly oblivious. Shitty-hair then shuffled awkwardly from one foot to the other. “Do you think you might schedule your own appointment sometime?” he asked hopefully. 

Bakugou shoved his cold hands into his pockets. “I think I'll hold off for a little while longer,” he finally replied. 

He had been dreading this question ever since they left the teachers' lounge. It had weighed heavily in the air above them as they walked. Deep down, Bakugou knew that therapy would be beneficial for him. To be able to confide in a professional about being tortured by the league, the guilt he felt towards All Might’s sudden retirement, and now the controversial role the trio played in society. 

If only Bakugou didn’t have so much other shit piled on his plate right then. He was having a hard enough time trying to keep track of everyone’s dangerous secrets. The last thing he needed was someone rifling through his head where they could possibly stumble upon the truth of One For All or the existence of other worlds. Bakugou needed some time to get a better handle on his life before he was ready to book another session. 

Kirishima’s smile began to falter at his words, which hurt more than the blonde wished to admit. This idiotic mess of crimson hair was definitely going to be the death of him. With an irritated sigh, he hastily added, “I’ll try that BDSM freak’s dreaming tips first and see if those help any before I go back there again.” 

The red-head instantly perked up. “Thanks for giving it a chance, Bakugou,” Kirishima thanked, starting to walk again. 

He shot him a grin so huge that it was difficult to believe that it belonged to the same guy who had been so emotional he had accidentally injured himself with his own quirk not but 30 minutes earlier. 

The explosive hero had experienced countless of his friend’s night terrors first hand. Seen the severity of them as he helped calm him down, talked through them, and offered a sense of stability as the other teen slowly fought off his panic. Because of this, Bakugou wrongly assumed that he understood how badly Kirishima had been suffering better than anyone else. It was only when he witnessed his hardening quirk activating on its own and used to injure himself without the redhead even noticing, that Bakugou began to grasp how clueless he truly was about his condition. It was stupid of Bakugou to assume he knew everything about the redhead when he still kept many secrets from him as well. _‘This just proves that none of us are perfect.’_

The class knew Kirishima was struggling psychologically after his internship, but only a select few knew how deep that darkness dwelled inside him. A glimmer of it could be seen on his face when one of his new techniques falls short of his goals, or another classmate pulls further ahead. Even still, the ball of sunshine continued to go out of his way to boost his classmates to reach new heights. He doesn’t allow it to hold him down. Putting everyone’s happiness above himself. Whether that was problematic or not, it was who he was. And Bakuogu wouldn’t have it any other way. If the idiot continued to prioritize others' needs above himself, then the hothead would take it upon himself to oversee Kirishima’s well being. 

At the very least, the sturdy hero was better than him. ‘ _When I was being tortured, he didn’t waste any time trying to come rescue me. And how did I repay him? I was sitting idly at my desk while he fought for his life somewhere deep underground.’_ It didn’t matter that there was a gag order placed on him, Bakugou had known something was off in the days prior to the brat’s rescue. Something deep in his gut warned him that something terrible was stalking closer. Around this time, his developing hero sense was highly attuned to Shitty-hair, Deku, Round face, and the Frog Girl’s movements. 

Agitated, Bakugou had confronted Kirishima about his change in behavior multiple times, only to have him run away from him every single time. This was his first clue that something was wrong, but he had regretfully ignored it. By the time the day of the heist had arrived, Bakugou had been reduced to a fidgety mess. His fingers tapping irritably on the desk while his leg bounced uncontrollably as he pretended to pay attention to Present Mic’s lesson. His mind was painfully aware that not only were Kirishima and the other sidekicks suddenly absent from class, but so was EraserHead. 

The explosive hero’s dread only increased as the day progressed. Eventually, he had to discreetly excuse himself from the class before he puked from the dangerous levels of adrenaline coursing through his body. After somewhat calming himself with a long cold shower, he decided to retire to his room to sleep off the rest of his nerves. That was until news of his classmates' mission flashed across the common room t.v. Bakugou stopped dead in his tracks as he watched the unfocused footage of defeated villains, wounded heroes, pools of blood, and spiky red hair being loaded into an ambulance. The superimposing headline, _Daring Rescue Ends With Large Group Of Heroes Seriously Injured And One Left In Critical Condition,_ stretching across the display about made his knees buckle. 

The class held a somber vigil in the common room that night as they awaited any news of their classmates and for once Bakugou joined without complaint. His mind fearing the absolute worst as he sat nestled in between a sparkling Kaminari and a sniffling Mina. Never had he felt so useless as he did sitting on that couch. There he was in top fighting shape, but with no target to swing at as he waited for his phone to light up with a simple, _I’m fine,_ text message from his best friend. As the rest of his squad cuddled against him for comfort, Bakugou had silently sworn to any deity willing to listen to him, that he’d do anything for them if it meant Kirishima would return back to them, safe and sound. 

At half-past Midnight, they finally got a group video chat from Roundface who had borrowed the frog girl’s phone. When she finally put Kirishima on, Bakugou’s heart stopped. He was covered head to toe in bandages, some parts even soiled with fresh blood. Both arms secured across his chest in full casts, and whatever skin poked through his bandages was heavily bruised. He looked absolutely horrible, but regardless of this, he sported the same shark-toothed grin he always had, which tugged at what little heart Bakugou had. The ball of sunshine reassured everyone that he was just fine. That his injuries looked way worse than they actually were. 

Despite his reassuring words, Bakugou couldn’t help but feel incredibly guilty that he hadn’t done anything to prevent him from getting injured in the first place. If only Bakugou hadn’t failed so miserably in the provincial licensing exam. Then he would have been eligible to do the internships as well. Had he passed, Bakugou would have insisted that they interned somewhere together, which meant he would have been right there beside him. There wasn’t a better duo in the entire school. Together they would have blown that fucker away no problem. In Bakuogu’s mind, Kirishima almost died because of his inadequacy. Because he wasn’t good enough. Just like everything else in his fucking miserable life. He never told Kirishima, but it was because of this mentality that made his nightmares come back full force. Not because the red-head had started having nightmares of his own. 

Bakugou sighed. Kirishima had done so much for Bakugou in the past few months. He rescued him, offered endless support and friendship, kept his secret, helped alleviate his nightmares for a time, and now set up this therapy session for him. Worse, he didn’t realize how badly the change in plans had hurt him. He had his suspicions, of course, but instead of pursuing that instinct, Bakuogu had simply overlooked it out of sheer laziness. He didn’t deserve Kirishima. Not as a friend or whatever it was that they were at the moment. 

 _‘Fuck! Enough with this pity party!’_ his inner voice snarled. His crimson eyes instantly hardened with resolve. He didn’t have time for this. The explosive hero wouldn’t stoop down to that damn nerd’s level and wallow about the crappy hand fate had dealt him.

 _‘I’m Katsuki Fucking Bakugou for All Might’s sake!’_ the ash-blonde declared to himself. Instead of regressing into a little bitch, Bakugou would shove those worthless feelings down where they belonged, and he would actually do something productive with his problems. Thanks to Midnight, Bakugou now possessed some tools to tackle his measly little nightmare problem. This weekend was dedicated to digging up more info about the otherworldly travelers masquerading as their new classmates. 

He was telling the truth when he said he didn’t mistrust their intentions, but that didn’t dismiss the possibility of them being a passive threat to them. Bakuogu wasn’t going to let his guard down fully until he uncovered every secret they harbored from him. That only left one last task that still needed to be addressed. 

“Hey, Kiri,” Bakugou began as they made it into the dorm stairwell. Kirishima turned towards him but remained silent. Knowing if his friend made an effort to initiate the conversation, he didn’t need to be coaxed into continuing. 

“Thanks for setting this setting up and being there for me these past couple months,” he continued a little awkwardly. His usual irritation still echoing through his words, but they both understood that was just his default cadence. “I know you’re upset that I canceled our plans and that I should have talked it over with you first. But I really need to work things out with Kyo before it drives me crazy. I won’t be able to do it here on campus without the teachers getting in our way.”

“Is this like that time with Midoriya?” Kirishima asked.

 “Yeah, something like that,” Bakugou admitted, scowling at the nerd’s name out of reflex. _‘He’s more perceptive than he looks.’_ Even though Bakugou never explained why he challenged Deku to a Fight that night, the red-head seemed to understand that there was a secret meaning behind it. He would shoot him a look whenever Bakugou engaged in hushed small talk with the nerd or if he passed up an opportunity to yell at him for one reason or another. It was obvious that Kirishima wanted to ask about it, but held his tongue on the matter. Which was much appreciated, because he wouldn’t be able to answer even if he wanted to. No way would Bakugou curse him with that knowledge like Deku had done to him. 

“It’s complicated, but I promise I’ll tell you what I can when I get this resolved, alright?” 

 There was a solemn nod at that. The red-head reached for the handle of his dorm room, which they had just arrived at, but a hand on his shoulder pulled him back from it. Confused, Kirishima looked back at his friend. 

“And I also promise to make this up to you, Kiri,” Bakugou smirked, his shoulder leaning confidently against the wall. “When I get back Sunday, I’ll kick that Copycat out of the room so we can finally have some alone time.”

Before Kirishima could even respond, the ash-blonde grabbed hold of his tie and pulled him in for a kiss. The shark-toothed boy's cheeks turning as red as his hair with the realization that this was the first kiss they shared on campus outside their respected rooms. He had to break it off sooner than he would have liked to avoid anyone catching them, but one look at Kiri’s face made it worth it. 

“We’ll pick this up when I get back,” Bakuogu promised smugly before disappearing to his own dorm room to pack. The red-head still grinning like an idiot as he stared at his door.

_‘Idiot.’_

  
  


**_Tsubasa P. O. V._ **

 

Still shaken up from his dream the previous night, Tsubasa sought out his brother after class. Hoping to have a word with him while he was separated from Bakugou and Kirishima. Luckily they were preoccupied with some meeting with Midnight. Seeing as It would be Tsubasa’s only chance to speak with him before Sunday evening. The winged shinobi had heard from Midoriya earlier that day, that Kyo was going home with the other explosive teen for the weekend. This, of course, was news to him. _‘What is he up to?’_

It wasn’t challenging to find Kyo. One might assume that his bright orange hair would make him easy to spot in a crowd. While that’s usually the case, this world had no shortage of interesting people within its population. It was actually the company his brother had chosen to spend most of his time with, that gave away his position. Even from 20 feet away, Tsubasa could hear the infectious laughter of Kaminari, Sero, and Ashido as they walked back to the dorms with the brunette's two teammates trailing behind them hand in hand. All of them sporting giant grins as if they had not a care in the world. It almost felt cruel to put a damper on their fun. 

 “Hello everyone, what are you all up to?” Tsubasa greeted them when they came into earshot. Giving them all the friendliest smile he could muster. 

 “We’re on our way back to set up for Game Night,” Sero explained, holding up a box in his arms.

 “Yeah, Momo finally lifted the ban on us, so we’re finally allowed to pick a game again!” Giggled the pinkette after taking a sip of her bottle of vanilla coke. 

 “Any games in mind?”

The three future heroes smirked at that. “Truth or dare, of course!” Kaminari laughed. Immediately turning to high five Ashido. “You’ve played it, right?”

He shook his head. “Sorry, it’s not something Binoshi encourages,” he apologized guiltily. Despite what Kyo thought, he didn’t enjoy lying to everyone, but telling the truth about their origins was out of the question. “But I look forward to learning how to play with you tonight.” 

This response got a cheer from the group. The class really seemed to enjoy teaching sheltered kids about the joys of social interaction.

 “Did you need something from us, Tsubasa?~” Tohru asked sweetly, sensing his underlying urgency. 

 “Yes, I was actually hoping I could borrow my brother for a minute?”

Kyo, who had been doing his best to ignore his presence during this exchange, looked like he wanted to refuse his request. However, before he got the chance, Ashido pushed the copper-haired teen roughly in his direction. 

 “You heard him salmon breath, get outta here!”

 “What the fuck, Pink! Let me go!” he growled, trying to dig his heels in. “Why the fuck are you trying to get rid of me?”

 “To steal Tohru away, duh,” Ashido giggled evilly. Giving him one final shove that almost knocked him over. “Take all the time you need!” she called over her shoulder. Dragging a flustered Tohru behind her.

The twins watched them retreat in awkward silence.

 “What the hell do you want?” Kyo growled dangerously. Shoving his hands into the pockets of his baggy pants. His narrowed crimson eyes glowing dimly in an attempt to intimidate him, but Tsubasa held his ground. 

 “Take a walk with me?” he proposed calmly, pointing over his shoulder. Without waiting for his brother’s response, the dream walker turned on his heel and started walking away. Heading for an alley a little ways from them. An agitated hiss sounded behind him, followed by the copper-haired teen’s soft footsteps as he begrudgingly followed after him. Only when Tsubasa was sure they had traveled a safe distance away from any curious eyes and ears did he finally turn to face him. 

 “So, what’s this about?” Kyo snapped impatiently. Pretending to lean casually against the wall, while his sharp eyes and ears scanned their surroundings for any threats out of habit. Even in such a relaxed environment, the explosive shinobi didn’t allow himself to drop his guard. 

 “I had another dream,” Tsubasa announced sullenly. He then quickly summarized the last prophetic dreams he had. The ones that depicted their failure to save the class from the villains. Deciding to keep his nightmares about Tohru to himself. _‘No reason to upset him about nothing important.’_

The winged shinobi explained how their growing familiarity with their classmates was becoming a problem. That it will end up exposing their secrets, which will cause friction and mistrust between the two groups. Eventually sealing their fate as they are all annihilated by the villains and a horde of grotesque monsters. 

 “Something must have changed. We’re getting too invested with this class,” Tsubasa whispered too quietly for anyone else but Kyo to hear. “We should back off and tread carefully from now on. We can’t risk anyone else learning about where we come from or our mission until the danger has passed.”

The brunette expected his brother to be angry, but he actually looked a little sheepish as he spoke. “Yeah, about that,” Kyo began with his head turned away from him. His cheeks colored pink with embarrassment. “Last night, Bakuogu might have accidentally discovered that we’re not native to Japan...or this world.”

Tsubasa was speechless for a few moments. “H-He what?” The brunette finally stammered.

Kyo crossed his arms. His cheeks reddening even more. “He knows we can travel between worlds,” he repeated reluctantly. 

Tsubasa covers his eyes with his hands. Willing this to be nothing more than another bad dream. “How did this happen?” he sighed in utter defeat.

 “Hey, this isn’t my fault!” hissed his brother, angrily. 

Kyo then explains how Bakugou had stumbled upon their mother’s headband and not only knew what it meant but also knew a fair amount of their homeworld. Apparently, some kind of comic book depicted historical events as it followed the lives of numerous characters as if the reader were witnessing events first hand. Kyo explained that after Bakugou already uncovered their origins, Kyo decided to trade him more information about their lives to learn more about the books. After listening to what Kyo had to say, Bakugou had agreed to keep their origin’s a secret from everyone else. The future hero even revealed that the author had also written multiple branch-off series, which could possibly portray information about their mother or even future events. Which was why Kyo was leaving campus with him that weekend. 

 “I don’t like this, but I guess it can’t be helped,” Tsubasa acknowledged when he was done with his explanation. 

 “Is that everything then? I should really get back so I can finish packing for this weekend,” Kyo muttered, already making his way back the way they had come. Even shouldering Tsubasa slightly on his way by. 

 “Kyo,” the brunette called after him when he made it a few paces away. His brother halted but made no move to face him. “Can you guarantee that Bakugou and the others won't discover our true mission here?”

 The copper-haired teen looked over his shoulder. “You want me to pinky promise?” Kyo smirked, jokingly holding up his pinky for him. 

 “I’m serious,” Tsubasa warned, allowing the smallest traces of irritation to echo in his voice. “Weren’t you listening to my warning earlier? You’re becoming too attached to this class. You need to keep your distance.”

 The temperature around them immediately spiked. Kyo’s crimson eyes blazing brightly with anger. A sign that he was losing control of his emotions and, as a result, his powers as well.

 “You got some nerve saying that,” Kyo snarled, which made his sharp canines more pronounced. His fiery gaze glared back at Tsubasa. Willing him to back down, but he held firm. Realizing that his younger brother wasn't going to submit, he continued, “These aren’t just our classmates or our employers anymore. They’re our friends! You can feel that, right? Why can’t we tell them what's at stake?”

 _‘So that’s what this is about,’_ the winged teen frowned to himself. _‘He’s always like this.’_

Tsubasa’s eyes suddenly flash an icy blue in contrast to his brother. His massive wings fluttering around him in a warning. The movement expelling a strong gust of wind all around them. Scattering debris and flowing through their hair violently, yet neither of the twins took any notice of it. 

 “You know why,” Tsubasa warned coldly. Dropping his usual polite and friendly way of speaking. It wasn’t a tone he enjoyed using, but it was sometimes necessary in times like this. 

 “The more people who know about us, about our real mission here, the more it can change the future. With a class this close, it won’t be long before the whole class knows our secret. If that happens, how could we possibly hope to protect them all when there are 20 plus people constantly second-guessing everything and changing their choices? This will end up creating infinite new possible futures. Each one, worse than the last.” 

 “We don’t know that for sure,” Kyo proposed hastily. Clearly grasping at straws to support his argument. “This class is different. Unlike in the past, these kids are trained to deal with disaster scenarios.”

 “Do you really want to risk their lives on that? It’s bad enough that Aizawa and Shinso know everything they do.”

 “Fine, have it your way,” Kyo yielded in a gruff tone. 

 “It’s the right thing to do,” the dream walker sighed in relief. His eyes flickering back to amber while his wings relaxed against his back. “This isn’t easy for me either. I’ve grown attached to our classmates as well. But if you truly care for them, you have to keep your distance and tell them nothing.”

His brother remained silent. Refusing to meet his eyes. 

His older brother’s behavior was disconcerting. “So you promise not to tell any of them our true mission?” he urged in a concerned tone. 

Kyo rolled his eyes. “Cross my heart and hope to die,” the copper-haired shinobi muttered sarcastically. Mimicking a crossing gesture over his heart. Smirking at the face, Tsubasa made as a result of his underhanded jab. 

' _Very mature,’_ the brunette muttered to himself. Tsubasa should have known Kyo wouldn’t take any advice he said seriously. Not when he was still incredibly angry with him. This would end up being like his fake promise he had made with Aizawa about not bringing weapons to class. Kyo was being a brat, and this angered Tsubasa. He was used to his older brother being impulsive, selfish, and causing trouble wherever they went. After spending years apologizing and making amends for the hothead’s explosive temper and destructive nature. Tsubasa had made peace with his role as his brother's keeper. However, his attitude now was more than his usual brashness. Kyo was taking their stupid fight to dangerous levels. One that could have detrimental ramifications. 

Now, the explosive shinobi wasn’t petty enough to spill their secret just to retaliate against the brunette. Kyo cared too much about the class’s wellbeing to do something that stupid. No, the stubborn shinobi would share it out of mutual respect for them. Believing they would be strong enough to wield that information wisely. It also didn’t help that Kyo had been emotionally unstable the past few months. Tsubasa wouldn’t put it past him to reveal the truth by accident. _‘Fine, if that’s how he’s going to be. I’ll have to take drastic measures.’_

 _“_ If that’s how you feel, then you wouldn’t mind making a Blood Pact with me then?” Tsubasa suggested.

Crimson orbs snapped back to him. Unmeasurable fury burning in their depths **.** “You're not serious?” he challenged through grit teeth.

“As a heart attack,” Tsubasa quipped, mirroring his brother's dark humor from before. His eyes glowing an intimidating icy blue once more, prompting an intense glaring contest between brothers. Each one willing the other to submit. 

After what seemed like an eternity, Kyo finally averted his gaze. “Fine, whatever,” he muttered under his breath. 

Without another word, the shinobi then brings his hand to his mouth. Biting down on his thumb until he draws blood. He uses more force than necessary, and in no time, a trail of blood trickles free from the wound easily. His eyes never waver as he glares kunai at him.

Following his lead, Tsubasa does the same. His nose scrunching up slightly with the unpleasant coppery flavor. “Kyo, do you promise not to reveal our true mission to anyone in the class?”

 “Yes.”

“Then, I accept your pact brother,” Tsubasa announced, pushing his wounded thumb into Kyo’s. Once touching, the wounds on their thumbs immediately begin to throb as warmth centers around the injury. Time seems to slow down, and after a few seconds, the blood flowing from their cuts starts to travel backward. Defying gravity as it flows back toward the opening of their wounds until suddenly vanishing completely. The only trace of its existence was the faint matching scars adorning their respective thumbs. 

Kyo regards the newly healed scar thoughtfully for a second. “Are we done here?” he asked in a somber tone. He’s no longer angry, just hurt, and it made Tsubasa’s heart ache that he had to force him into this. 

The winged teen could only nod. Stepping out of his brother’s path as he stomped his way back to the dorms. It was almost time for him to meet up with Bakugou. As he watched him walk further away, he had to remind himself that he had done the right thing. Tsubasa couldn’t risk his brother revealing their mission to train the class for an upcoming villain attack. That they were trying to stop a prophecy of the whole class dying. He knew Kyo meant well, but he had a crippling habit of trusting people who didn’t deserve it. It was a trait that had already killed him once. 

Tsubasa released the sigh he hadn't realized he had been holding. It wasn’t his intention to upset him further. He had approached Kyo intending to get past the awkwardness that had developed between him since his accident. If only that incident with Bakugou hadn’t stumbled on their world-traveling secret, maybe he could have proceeded without forcing him into a blood pact. It was Tsubasa’s responsibility to make sure nothing else threatened the future they wished to achieve. There simply wasn’t any other course of action to take. It looked like he’ll be in the doghouse for a while longer.

That left only one matter to attend to. _‘Should I inform Aizawa that Bakugou knows where we come?’_ he pondered to himself. After deliberating on it for a few seconds, he ultimately decided against it. _‘No, not yet. We can handle him for the time being.’_ And with that, the dream walker spread his wings and took to the skies. Thinking a long flying session would help clear his mind. 

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hesci Everyone! I'm back! Sorry for the extremely long wait. My life was extremely busy over the holidays, which gave me terrible writers block. But after watching Heroes Rising, Incredible movie btw, I was inspired to finish this up.  
> I would like to thank those who have given me feedback already. Your reviews made me feel so amazing and fulfilled that I busted out half the chapter in one sitting. Then I got a puppy and couldn't stop playing with him. For that, I am truly sorry. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Like always, I hope you're enjoying the story so far and I hope you continue to keep reading. If you would be so kind as to give me kudos, likes or leave a review or comments on the story so far would be absolutely amazing. Not only does it help validate the work I’ve put into this story, but it also motivates me to update faster, knowing people are actually reading and enjoying it. You don’t have to sing it praises either. Let me know if the chapters are too long, if I’m moving the plot to slow or if I need to add or cut out fight scenes or personal interactions. If you have a ship or friendship that you love, I can try to work that in.


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